The bad thermostat If you're adjusting the settings all the time trying to avoid the house overheating, it may be that the thermostat is misreading temperatures in the house and is forcing the heater to stay on longer than it should.
In most cases, a malfunctioning thermostat is the cause of your home's overheating. When the temperature sensor inside your thermostat detects the wrong heat levels, it will tell your heater to keep running even if your home is already comfortably warm.
Typically, these are air flow-related issues, like the fan or filter is broken. Then, the heat generated by the furnace can't leave, causing the overheating. However, there may be other culprits too. You'll need a professional to help you figure out what is going on.
Check for dust, dirt, and other kinds of residue inside the thermostat. Excessive dust and dirt buildup can prevent your thermostat from working properly. Clean any residue you see on the thermostat, and see if that helps improve the temperature in your home.
There are many factors that can cause a home to get too hot in the summer, and many of them are energy efficiency issues: Insufficient attic insulation – in the summer, and on other hot days, radiant heat from the sun can permeate through your roof and heat up your attic like a solar heated oven.
It's normal for humans to feel hot some of the time, but if you're always hot, there could be an underlying condition at play that prevents your body from properly cooling itself. Some reasons for feeling hot all the time include diabetes, hyperthyroidism, menopause, pregnancy, fever, and anhidrosis.
Check if your meters are set up the right way round. Sometimes your day-time usage is charged at the night rate, and your night-time usage at the day rate. If this is happening and you're using night storage heaters, it will make your bills very high.
Start by making sure that your thermostat is calibrated correctly. A miscalibrated thermostat can lead to inaccurate temperature readings. This will cause it to overshoot the desired temperature. Look at your thermostat's manual or contact the manufacturer to recalibrate it.
In general, 80 degrees is too hot for a house if people are inside. However, if people aren't home during the day or for vacation during the summer, an indoor temperature of 80 degrees can save energy until you return and lower the temperature.
If you try to resolve the issue after checking for default programming, energy-saving programs, old batteries, and even if someone has been changing the temperature in your home it may be time to contact a professional. There may be an issue with old wires or software.
A furnace cycling on and off repeatedly can be caused by various reasons, from dirty filters and obstructions in ducts and registers to incorrect thermostat settings and faulty limit switches. By following the steps above, you can help prevent your furnace from cycling too frequently and save energy costs.
For 1- to 2-inch filters, replace them every 1 to 3 months. For 3- to 4-inch filters, replace them every 6 to 9 months. For 5- to 6-inch filters, replace them every 9 to 12 months.
When the rise is too high, you are not moving enough air over the heat exchanger. That can (and must) be corrected with a blower adjustment or by resolving the source of low airflow in the system, such as a dirty filter, blower wheel, etc.
If the temperature is set to 74°F but the thermometer shows 78°F, you will have to recalibrate the thermostat to account for this 4-degree deviation. Even with older AC units or furnaces, you might have to recalibrate your thermostat from time to time.
A gas furnace should have a vibrant or bright blue flame. When you see a weak and wavy or flickering flame, this indicates gas is not being completely burned. Pilot light color changes are another indicator that carbon monoxide is not venting away from the system safely.
If it's 90 degrees outside, most people would set their AC to a perfectly comfortable temperature of 68-72°F.
Optimizing Thermostat Settings
The DOE recommends a temperature range from 68 degrees up to 72 degrees. If elderly persons are residing in the house, many sources recommend higher temperatures — up to 78 degrees.
Sleep experts believe the best temperature for great sleep is between 68-72 degrees Fahrenheit. But in addition to making you uncomfortable and interfering with healthy sleep patterns, being too hot at any time of day or night can cause health risks like dehydration and heat stroke.
Fever or elevated body temperature might be caused by: A viral infection. A bacterial infection. Heat exhaustion.
When the sensor isn't working correctly, it may cycle on and off randomly between proper activation periods causing your home to be either too hot or too cold due to the thermostat switching on and off before the correct temperature is met.
3) Dry Skin and Eyes
When you switch on your heater, it will pull more moisture from the air and reduce your home's humidity, potentially leading to skin and eye irritation. By keeping your home at a lower temperature, you'll have more moisture in the air and reduce the risk of your skin drying out.