When you think of ‘thermal comfort at home’, the first thing that most likely comes to mind is retaining the heat during wintertime. However, attaining optimal thermal comfort at home means just that – making sure that the temperature is at its optimal level, regardless of the season, geographical position and your home type. The main benefit of keeping the temperature at the optimal level within your home isn’t only the fact that you’ll always feel comfortable – it’s also excellent for your utility bills.
The Reasons behind Uncomfortable Home Temperature
In order to achieve optimal thermal comfort at home, it’s important that you realize why your indoor temperature levels are undesirable. Solar heat gain, average temperature of nearby surfaces, humidity, air temperature, air velocity and radiant temperature or humidity are all well-known factors that might give you discomfort at home.
Often thermal discomfort is the result of a relatively simple problem, so you should start here. Checking your thermostat(s) should be the first step – if someone changes the settings, this can easily confuse the entire HVAC system. Next, check the dampers to see if they’re jammed. Finally, inspect the system’s diffusers.
HVAC Filter Replacement
If you still haven’t achieved an optimal thermal comfort inside your home, chances are that your HVAC filters need replacement. Consider installing high-performance HVAC filters – these might be pricier, but they will lower your general HVAC costs by more than 10 percent, in addition to improving your overall indoor air quality.
Think about Getting Displacement Ventilation
The main point behind this cooling concept is introducing low-velocity, cool air at the floor level into your home, which is especially beneficial if you own a house. In scientific terms, it utilizes buoyancy forces generated by radiant heat sources, for the purpose of removing the heat to the ceiling level, as opposed to mixing it back into the space, which is what you get with regular ventilation systems.
Remove Sources of Radiant Heat
This aspect is especially important for households and rooms with a large number of devices, such as desktop computers, laptops and printers. If you possess any of these or all of them, these sources of radiant heat are likely to be the culprits for the unfavorable temperatures you have at hand. Think about removing these devices; not only will this improve your room temperature, but it will also make sure that the devices themselves don’t overheat.
Mind Your Location
The majority of tips with regards to optimal thermal comfort you can get online are quite legitimate, even though some might not really help you. If you’re still wondering how this is possible, it’s quite simple – everyone is talking about their own location. For instance, having double glazed windows installed in Perth will do you a world of good, but doing so in London won’t make that much of a difference. This is largely owing to the fact that the mentioned Australian city is located in the South-West of the continent, with dry, hot summers hot and wet winters – a climate very much unlike the Great Britain capital’s modest damp weather. This makes thermal comfort a considerably bigger concern for the former than for the latter.
Low-E Window Film
The low-e window film reduces solar heat gain during the warmer months, while keeping the radiant heat on the inside during the wintertime. Installing this into your home will definitely help you attain optimal thermal comfort. Additionally, it is said that low-e window film will help your household adapt to a wider range of thermal conditions, which is an extremely useful physical trait. Finally, this technology reduces glare, without obstructing the views to the outside!
As mentioned, there is more to ensuring that the thermal comfort at your home is at its optimal level – it will also secure that your bills remain within the necessary limits, without putting your comfort at risk. The above listed hints will help you achieve the temperature goals within your home.
