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Why do I have to heat the house to a warmer temperature on cold days to feel the same?
I have a small house. It is poorly insulated (no wall insulation and some air leaks). It also has a large amount of windows and side walls per square foot. And I have a cement slab floor.
Normally, I can wander around the house comfortably in shorts if the inside air temperature is 60° F. But it is record cold outside today. Got down to the high 30s outside last night.
So I set the heater at 60° F. And it is cold. I have two sweatshirts on and my jeans and feet feel cold.
The inside air temperature is correct. What is going on?
True to life story, only mildly exaggerated. Best physics answer.
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It is a rental. lol. You all have wonderful ideas.
At least most of the year the temperature is great without heat or air conditioning.
But I was actually asking a Physics question as to why the air temperature differs from the temperature I feel. (the information is in the problem).
5 Answers
- 1 decade agoFavorite Answer
You could replace the interior of the walls with a convection layer. Or get a thing of paint with pigmented metallic coating (cheaper).
Also carpet insulators can increase temperature conservation.
Minute differences, but still something.
You have to be losing energy somehow, and that's probably going to be through the walls, and ceiling, since heat rises, if you can't find a direct leak.
It may have to do with the materials your roof is made up of.
- 5 years ago
Having just replaced the Windows in my house (most were original and ~160+ year old, so it's wasn't fun, but it was interesting) I'll relate my experience. The air flowing through your poorly insulated and sealed house is what causes you to feel colder when it is cooler outside. You may be at 60 degrees, but you have ~40 degree air coming in as your 60 degree air escapes. Also, try measuring the temperature at the floor and at the ceiling... When it's 60 degrees outside, chances are that the entire mass of air in your house is going to be close to 60 degrees. If it's cold outside, your thermostat can read 60 degrees all day, but your feet can be very chilly. My advise, besides fixing air leaks of course, would be to get a ceiling fan to circulate the warm air down from your ceiling and keep your feet warmer. _
- 1 decade ago
air movement can make it feel much colder. and if your moving in and out of wamr and cold rooms, your body needs to warm up inside aswell as out, and this takes time.
you might benifit from resealing your windows. i know i did, i have double glazine, and the seals were all terrible around the windows. i managed to get some sealers from a DIY store and just peeled off the backing tape and stuck them all around the windows. no more drafts. then i got some silicone sealant and sealed around the windows, and put some draft excluders on the bottom of the doors. made it much warmer.
the problem is that if air is coming in, then something must be going out, all the warm air is going out as cold air comes in.
but i believe that in the winter, your capiliries shrink so they hold onto more heat, and so dont absorb any as easily either. just my thoughts, prossibly right, but possibly wrong. lol
- Anonymous1 decade ago
relative humidity . colder air has a lower moisture content . get more house plants to raise inside humidity levels .
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