Hacker News Reader

Comment by capitol_ | Hacker News Reader

Why do you need it to be cooler than 18c?

> The bigger challenge is with my windows open, my heating just can't even keep up! It'll be maxed out and only 18c.

They're trying to heat it.

You’re replying to somebody from the UK. They want it warmer than 18C inside. In winter it is typically much colder than this outside so they’re saying their heating won’t get the house warmer than this even if windows are only cracked open.

I think they want more than 18c. 18c is pretty cold to sit in for a prolonged time.

At 18C I wouldn't even put on a sweater. People need to stop being so wimpy. 10C is a good target temperature during the winter.

Good that everybody is the same and when 18°C is enough for you everybody should be fine with it, even children, old people and sick ones.

Spindly old grandmothers can crank the thermostat. Everybody else who cranks it then proceeds to whine about the cost and air quality is being an idiot. Put on a sweater.

10C is a great indoor temperature if you want condensation everywhere and eventually mold, but that's a price worth paying to not be considered "wimpy" I suppose? https://www.homebuilding.co.uk/advice/minimum-house-temperat...

> The minimum house temperature your home should be kept at to avoid damp, mould and condensation is 18°C, according to health and energy experts.

That article and the supposed experts are idiotic. Condensation is a function of relative temperatures and humidities. If your house is warmer than outdoors, then you're not going to get condensation from outdoor air.

The outdoor air isn't really relevant, the issue is human activity (breathing, showering, laundry, etc.) raising the indoor humidity when combined with low indoor temperatures causing surfaces to approach the dew point. Particularly external walls or windows that will be a lower temperature than the room as a whole.

At 70% RH and 15C air temperatures, the dew point is 10C - which could easily be achieved along the exterior walls of an older more poorly insulated house.

If only there were some way to circulate expired air out of a building, perhaps with open windows...

My house is bone dry in winter with the windows regularly open. The humidity concern is idiotic.

Good for you. At 18C my fingers get too cold to type properly and I keep missing keys.

Great, just need to get fat.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com