Saturday, August 21, 2010

I control my neighbor's heat. How do I end a dispute over temperature setting?

Is there an inexpensive way to allow the upstairs tenant to control her own heat? It's oil heat, and my brother had mentioned there was a way to install a blower or something that would give her control of her own heat. I'm baking because I have to keep the heat up in the 80s when I like it in the 60s. Help me please.I control my neighbor's heat. How do I end a dispute over temperature setting?
You can install dampers and blowers in her ducts and wire them through a thermostat upstairs. You might then want to shut off some of your vents downstairs, but there is not a way to add heat to her apartment without running your common furnace. You would have to add a pretty elaborate system to make all of that work perfectly.





I am not sure what you mean by oil heat. Oil heat is just the fuel that burns. You are not telling us if it is a forced air furnace or a boiler.





If it is a boiler with radiaters then YES you can definitely add a thermostat or several in her apartment to control the flow of hot fluid to her radiaters. You will still have to fire your boiler in order to provice the heat, but hot water or steam systems can be controlled by zone quite easily but not for free.I control my neighbor's heat. How do I end a dispute over temperature setting?
First ask yourself: Who pays the bill? Is it shared by percentage of use or just split in half? If you have a landlord, then approach him and find out if there is a possibility that the meter's can be separated....If you open your windows or turn on the air, then you can cool down your space, but it may cost you a lot more money.Since you control the Temperature, perhaps you and your neighbor can come to an understanding about the setting...say set it on 70 degrees...10 degrees above what you prefer and 10 degree below what your neighbor prefers...yet a fair deal. If you want to be cooler...then wear less clothes...and your neighbor can wear more clothes to keep warmer.
You mentioned a blower so i am assuming your are talking about forced air.





Turn off your downstairs vents if the vents are not adjustable then you can get magnetic covers very cheap. This will force more air to the upstairs vents.





It would be a good idea to move the therostat upstairs too this is easy. you will have to run a wire up stairs or they also sell wireless versions but they are expensive.
maybe get an electric baseboard heater for the upstairs tenant to use to keep the room she is in nice and toasty, and charge em based on the average wattage used by the unit per day, could even have them pay for the unit so they can pick the most energy efficent model they would like. You should be able to get an estimate from someone who sells them, I would think on how much it would cost to run yearly.
Depends on if it is hydronic (water) or FHA (air). Either way you should be able to set up a 2 zone system. It may cost a little or... (depends on how its setup but you should end up saving on your fuel bill so...


Talk to a heating contractor in your area.


Good Luck!

1 comment:

Hazel Grace said...

Pump will continue to operate until the water reaches the correct level in the boiler. Part of the safety feature, please ensure the feedpump automatically turn on when water level hit below the low water electrode.

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