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#1
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Secure (tamper proof) thermostat?
I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely
available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! |
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#3
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#4
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wrote in message oups.com... I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! They do sell locks to place over the meter. Used to use them when we had tenants. |
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#5
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FDR wrote: wrote in message oups.com... I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! They do sell locks to place over the meter. Used to use them when we had tenants. Greetings, The locks don't work as well as you might think because they invite tampering. They do work to keep honest people honest but most tenants don't fall into that category. William PS: How do you tamper with one? a) pry it from the drywall if it isn't screwed into a stud, put it back when you are done b) open it by trying a number of different keys until one jiggles it open c) drill a smale hole in the side and use a paper-clip to adjust the "slide-bar" d) shine a bright light on it in summer to make the AC come on e) Peltier Junctions are my favorite but you don't have to worry about most tenants using them |
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#6
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" wrote in message ups.com... wrote: I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! Greetings, I had this same problem and here is how I solved it. a) purchase 2 $10 digital thermostats b) install one of the new thermostates INSIDE THE WALL where the existing thermostat is wired to the heater c) patch the wall d) install the other thermostat, a dummy, with dummy wires running to it in front Don't most digital thermostats have batteries in them to maintain memory? Seal it in the wall, once battery dies, you are SOL. I agree with the other posters- teach the kid or other offender, or buy one of those clear lock-boxes with the vents, to install around the thermostat. Any wall-mount lock-box could be adapted, just drill enough holes for venting, but the clear ones are slightly less ugly. Might have to go to a real supply house, not the big-box, to find one. Or maybe if there is a cover over the buttons, just devise some sort of lockout or seal for that. If you are handy, you could even build a recessed cabinet into the stud space, mount the 'stat in that, and put a locking glass door on the front, like an old-time office fire alarm. Again, be sure to vent it, so the thing gets a true reading of air temp. aem sends... |
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#7
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In article ,
FDR wrote: wrote in message roups.com... I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! They do sell locks to place over the meter. Used to use them when we had tenants. what sort of tenants? If it is a roommate/shared housing situation, then cooperation is in order to find a mutually agreeable temprature. If its not a shared housing situation, what gives you the right to dictate the temprature of your tenants living quarters? -- -- Welcome My Son, Welcome To The Machine -- Bob Vaughan | techie @ tantivy.net | | P.O. Box 19792, Stanford, Ca 94309 | -- I am Me, I am only Me, And no one else is Me, What could be simpler? -- |
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#8
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"Bob Vaughan" wrote in message ... In article , FDR wrote: wrote in message groups.com... I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! They do sell locks to place over the meter. Used to use them when we had tenants. what sort of tenants? If it is a roommate/shared housing situation, then cooperation is in order to find a mutually agreeable temprature. If its not a shared housing situation, what gives you the right to dictate the temprature of your tenants living quarters? The law here says what the minimum heating temperature is. -- -- Welcome My Son, Welcome To The Machine -- Bob Vaughan | techie @ tantivy.net | | P.O. Box 19792, Stanford, Ca 94309 | -- I am Me, I am only Me, And no one else is Me, What could be simpler? -- |
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#9
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" wrote in message oups.com... FDR wrote: wrote in message oups.com... I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! They do sell locks to place over the meter. Used to use them when we had tenants. Greetings, The locks don't work as well as you might think because they invite tampering. They do work to keep honest people honest but most tenants don't fall into that category. Well, we never had any tampering. William PS: How do you tamper with one? a) pry it from the drywall if it isn't screwed into a stud, put it back when you are done b) open it by trying a number of different keys until one jiggles it open c) drill a smale hole in the side and use a paper-clip to adjust the "slide-bar" d) shine a bright light on it in summer to make the AC come on e) Peltier Junctions are my favorite but you don't have to worry about most tenants using them |
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#10
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ameijers wrote: " wrote in message ups.com... wrote: I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! Greetings, I had this same problem and here is how I solved it. a) purchase 2 $10 digital thermostats b) install one of the new thermostates INSIDE THE WALL where the existing thermostat is wired to the heater c) patch the wall d) install the other thermostat, a dummy, with dummy wires running to it in front Don't most digital thermostats have batteries in them to maintain memory? I suspect the batteries are required for the thermostats you mention to operate but that the settings are stored in eeprom. Seal it in the wall, once battery dies, you are SOL. a) use lithium batteries and it may last 10+ years b) get the type that runs off wall current c) use a ac-dc transformer in place of batteries I agree with the other posters- teach the kid or other offender, or buy one of those clear lock-boxes with the vents, to install around the thermostat. Any wall-mount lock-box could be adapted, just drill enough holes for venting, but the clear ones are slightly less ugly. Might have to go to a real supply house, not the big-box, to find one. Or maybe if there is a cover over the buttons, just devise some sort of lockout or seal for that. If you are handy, you could even build a recessed cabinet into the stud space, mount the 'stat in that, and put a locking glass door on the front, like an old-time office fire alarm. Again, be sure to vent it, so the thing gets a true reading of air temp. If the offender is a tenant who is in the process of eviction wishing to run up your utilities out of spite you won't be able to "teach them". Again, vent holes are a good way to gain access to the unit with a wire of some sort. aem sends... Hope this helps, William PS: If it is in fact your kids you do have bigger problems. |
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#11
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wrote:
I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! www.white-rodgers.com They make several models that have a lockout code. And I think there are 3 levels of security too like locked, semi-locked, and unlocked. Also you can program it to turn fan on continuously during certain time periods and work just with the heat or a/c during others. different programming groups like 5+1+1, 5+2, and 7 days. Different program set for heat mode vs. ac mode. filter change timer. I really dig this thing. I think it was ~$100, but you really only buy such a thing once anyway... -- Respectfully, CL Gilbert "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door() into the sheepfold{}, but climbeth up some other *way, the same is a thief and a robber." GnuPG Key Fingerprint: 82A6 8893 C2A1 F64E A9AD 19AE 55B2 4CD7 80D2 0A2D For a free Java interface to Freechess.org see http://www.rigidsoftware.com/Chess/chess.html |
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#12
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I agree with the other posters- teach the kid or other offender, or buy one of those clear lock-boxes with the vents, to install around the thermostat. Any wall-mount lock-box could be adapted, just drill enough holes for venting, but the clear ones are slightly less ugly. Might have to go to a real supply house, not the big-box, to find one. Or maybe if there is a cover over the buttons, just devise some sort of lockout or seal for that. If you are handy, you could even build a recessed cabinet into the stud space, mount the 'stat in that, and put a locking glass door on the front, like an old-time office fire alarm. Again, be sure to vent it, so the thing gets a true reading of air temp. aem sends... Reminds me of a story I heard where the tenants kept an ice pack on the locked thermostat in the winter time to get the house to heat up more. I suppose you could do the reverse with a small space heater blowing on the thermostat in the summer to get the A/C to go colder. Ken |
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#13
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Legend has it that one guy kept the peace in his family
by having two thermostats. One was disconnected, in the living room for his wife to fool with. The real thermostat was hidden away in a closet. On 23 Aug 2005 19:22:39 -0700, " wrote: FDR wrote: wrote in message oups.com... I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! They do sell locks to place over the meter. Used to use them when we had tenants. Greetings, The locks don't work as well as you might think because they invite tampering. They do work to keep honest people honest but most tenants don't fall into that category. William PS: How do you tamper with one? a) pry it from the drywall if it isn't screwed into a stud, put it back when you are done b) open it by trying a number of different keys until one jiggles it open c) drill a smale hole in the side and use a paper-clip to adjust the "slide-bar" d) shine a bright light on it in summer to make the AC come on e) Peltier Junctions are my favorite but you don't have to worry about most tenants using them rj |
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#14
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" wrote in
ups.com: wrote: I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! Greetings, I had this same problem and here is how I solved it. a) purchase 2 $10 digital thermostats b) install one of the new thermostates INSIDE THE WALL where the existing thermostat is wired to the heater c) patch the wall d) install the other thermostat, a dummy, with dummy wires running to it in front Hope this helps, William A TS -inside- a wall gets no air circulation around it,and will not work effectively or properly. -- Jim Yanik jyanik at kua.net |
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#15
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"Ken" wrote in
oups.com: I agree with the other posters- teach the kid or other offender, or buy one of those clear lock-boxes with the vents, to install around the thermostat. Any wall-mount lock-box could be adapted, just drill enough holes for venting, but the clear ones are slightly less ugly. Might have to go to a real supply house, not the big-box, to find one. Or maybe if there is a cover over the buttons, just devise some sort of lockout or seal for that. If you are handy, you could even build a recessed cabinet into the stud space, mount the 'stat in that, and put a locking glass door on the front, like an old-time office fire alarm. Again, be sure to vent it, so the thing gets a true reading of air temp. aem sends... Reminds me of a story I heard where the tenants kept an ice pack on the locked thermostat in the winter time to get the house to heat up more. I suppose you could do the reverse with a small space heater blowing on the thermostat in the summer to get the A/C to go colder. Ken Just wrap some Xmas tree lights around it,the older large-bulb sort. Or place one of those halogen lamps near it! -- Jim Yanik jyanik at kua.net |
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#16
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"Ken" wrote in message oups.com... I agree with the other posters- teach the kid or other offender, or buy one of those clear lock-boxes with the vents, to install around the thermostat. Any wall-mount lock-box could be adapted, just drill enough holes for venting, but the clear ones are slightly less ugly. Might have to go to a real supply house, not the big-box, to find one. Or maybe if there is a cover over the buttons, just devise some sort of lockout or seal for that. If you are handy, you could even build a recessed cabinet into the stud space, mount the 'stat in that, and put a locking glass door on the front, like an old-time office fire alarm. Again, be sure to vent it, so the thing gets a true reading of air temp. aem sends... Reminds me of a story I heard where the tenants kept an ice pack on the locked thermostat in the winter time to get the house to heat up more. Of course in time the condensation will ruin the lock and thermostat. I suppose you could do the reverse with a small space heater blowing on the thermostat in the summer to get the A/C to go colder. Ken |
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#17
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Jim Yanik wrote: " wrote in ups.com: wrote: I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! Greetings, I had this same problem and here is how I solved it. a) purchase 2 $10 digital thermostats b) install one of the new thermostates INSIDE THE WALL where the existing thermostat is wired to the heater c) patch the wall d) install the other thermostat, a dummy, with dummy wires running to it in front Hope this helps, William A TS -inside- a wall gets no air circulation around it,and will not work effectively or properly. Unless the wall is an external wall the only effect might be less frequent cycling. Heat passes quickly and easily through 1/2" drywall. -- Jim Yanik jyanik at kua.net |
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#19
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Mine, Lux 1500 has what you are looking for. Regular residential
thermostat, but you can put a code on it. |
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#20
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How about a thermostat with a remote sensor? Lock the stat up in a secure
area and place remote sensor in area to be conditioned. |
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#21
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In article ,
FDR wrote: "Bob Vaughan" wrote in message ... In article , FDR wrote: wrote in message egroups.com... I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! They do sell locks to place over the meter. Used to use them when we had tenants. what sort of tenants? If it is a roommate/shared housing situation, then cooperation is in order to find a mutually agreeable temprature. If its not a shared housing situation, what gives you the right to dictate the temprature of your tenants living quarters? The law here says what the minimum heating temperature is. What exactly does the law say? I suspect it says something along the lines of "must be capable of sustaining a temprature of XX degrees", not that you must force your tenants to live at a temprature of XX degrees.. I know that If I was renting a property, and the landlord tried restricting what temprature I could set the unit to, I would be complaining very loudly until the issue was resolved. I would forcibly remove the security cover if necessary. If I am comfortable at 60 degrees, I am going to set the thermostat to 60 degrees.. ditto for 75 degrees.. I can see not wanting the temprature to drop below freezing, which can be acomplished with a second thermostat set for a low limit, like 50 degrees, in parallel with the first, but I can see no valid reason to restrict the tenants choice of the temprature of their environment. -- -- Welcome My Son, Welcome To The Machine -- Bob Vaughan | techie @ tantivy.net | | P.O. Box 19792, Stanford, Ca 94309 | -- I am Me, I am only Me, And no one else is Me, What could be simpler? -- -- -- Welcome My Son, Welcome To The Machine -- Bob Vaughan | techie @ tantivy.net | | P.O. Box 19792, Stanford, Ca 94309 | -- I am Me, I am only Me, And no one else is Me, What could be simpler? -- |
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#22
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Bob Vaughan wrote: In article , FDR wrote: "Bob Vaughan" wrote in message ... In article , FDR wrote: wrote in message egroups.com... I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! They do sell locks to place over the meter. Used to use them when we had tenants. what sort of tenants? If it is a roommate/shared housing situation, then cooperation is in order to find a mutually agreeable temprature. If its not a shared housing situation, what gives you the right to dictate the temprature of your tenants living quarters? The law here says what the minimum heating temperature is. What exactly does the law say? I suspect it says something along the lines of "must be capable of sustaining a temprature of XX degrees", not that you must force your tenants to live at a temprature of XX degrees.. I know that If I was renting a property, and the landlord tried restricting what temprature I could set the unit to, I would be complaining very loudly until the issue was resolved. I would forcibly remove the security cover if necessary. If I am comfortable at 60 degrees, I am going to set the thermostat to 60 degrees.. ditto for 75 degrees.. I can see not wanting the temprature to drop below freezing, which can be acomplished with a second thermostat set for a low limit, like 50 degrees, in parallel with the first, but I can see no valid reason to restrict the tenants choice of the temprature of their environment. As long as -you- are paying the energy bill, set it where you want. If the landlord is paying it he has the right to dictate what is a reasonable setting as long as it meets legal standards. Harry K |
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#23
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"Bob Vaughan" wrote in message ... In article , FDR wrote: "Bob Vaughan" wrote in message ... In article , FDR wrote: wrote in message legroups.com... I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! They do sell locks to place over the meter. Used to use them when we had tenants. what sort of tenants? If it is a roommate/shared housing situation, then cooperation is in order to find a mutually agreeable temprature. If its not a shared housing situation, what gives you the right to dictate the temprature of your tenants living quarters? The law here says what the minimum heating temperature is. What exactly does the law say? I suspect it says something along the lines of "must be capable of sustaining a temprature of XX degrees", not that you must force your tenants to live at a temprature of XX degrees.. It's been a while so I don't recall the exact temp., but it's to the effect that the temperature can't be lower than 60 degrees. So the thermostat get's set to xx degrees. I know that If I was renting a property, and the landlord tried restricting what temprature I could set the unit to, I would be complaining very loudly until the issue was resolved. I would forcibly remove the security cover if necessary. Well, this is the reason we don't rent anynore. You aren't the one paying the heating bill. We are. If you think that you can set it to 90 and we should lose money then you're mistaken. If I am comfortable at 60 degrees, I am going to set the thermostat to 60 degrees.. ditto for 75 degrees.. I can see not wanting the temprature to drop below freezing, which can be acomplished with a second thermostat set for a low limit, like 50 degrees, in parallel with the first, but I can see no valid reason to restrict the tenants choice of the temprature of their environment. Money is one reason. -- -- Welcome My Son, Welcome To The Machine -- Bob Vaughan | techie @ tantivy.net | | P.O. Box 19792, Stanford, Ca 94309 | -- I am Me, I am only Me, And no one else is Me, What could be simpler? -- -- -- Welcome My Son, Welcome To The Machine -- Bob Vaughan | techie @ tantivy.net | | P.O. Box 19792, Stanford, Ca 94309 | -- I am Me, I am only Me, And no one else is Me, What could be simpler? -- |
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#24
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Thanks for the replies everyone!
The actual intent of the thermostat is to benefit my grandfather's health. They have central air conditioning and he does not understand that if he turns the system off, it takes all day to cool the house again. He is suffering from a few health problems that go along with his age (90), and we would like to keep the house climate as controlled as possible since the heat definitely causes him problems. I've searched a little more and will be checking the link or 2 posted above. I've seen a few secure thermostats that range from about ~$80 to ~$300 so without a little more research, I'm not sure what we'll decide on just yet. P.S. it's not a *drastic* problem, it's just that when he messes with the thermostat letting the house get up to 90, he's more or less jeopardizing his health. |
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#26
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"Phil Yarbrough" wrote in
: How about a thermostat with a remote sensor? Lock the stat up in a secure area and place remote sensor in area to be conditioned. That makes sense. After all,it's just a tiny 2-wire thermistor that can be easily hidden.Most are the size of a small seed. -- Jim Yanik jyanik at kua.net |
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#27
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In article ,
FDR wrote: "Bob Vaughan" wrote in message ... In article , FDR wrote: "Bob Vaughan" wrote in message ... In article , FDR wrote: wrote in message glegroups.com... I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! They do sell locks to place over the meter. Used to use them when we had tenants. what sort of tenants? If it is a roommate/shared housing situation, then cooperation is in order to find a mutually agreeable temprature. If its not a shared housing situation, what gives you the right to dictate the temprature of your tenants living quarters? The law here says what the minimum heating temperature is. What exactly does the law say? I suspect it says something along the lines of "must be capable of sustaining a temprature of XX degrees", not that you must force your tenants to live at a temprature of XX degrees.. It's been a while so I don't recall the exact temp., but it's to the effect that the temperature can't be lower than 60 degrees. So the thermostat get's set to xx degrees. I know that If I was renting a property, and the landlord tried restricting what temprature I could set the unit to, I would be complaining very loudly until the issue was resolved. I would forcibly remove the security cover if necessary. Well, this is the reason we don't rent anynore. You aren't the one paying the heating bill. We are. If you think that you can set it to 90 and we should lose money then you're mistaken. My concern is being able to set the thermostat to a temperature that is comfortable to me. If you are paying for utilities, and try locking the thermostat, we are going to have problems. If the temperature is too high, You are going to end up heating the outdoors as I open windows to cool off. If it is too low (and we are not talking 75+), you are going to be paying for the power to run the space heaters necessary to keep the environment at a comfortable temperature. Either way, you are going to be paying more than if you simply allowed me to control my own environment. For what it's worth, I tend to set my thermostat slightly lower than a lot of people, and I like to turn it down when I go to bed. I have been in a number of places where the temperature was set too high, and where it was uncomfortably warm as a result. Paying to live in an environment that is uncomfortable to me because the landlord won't allow me to control the temperature is simply unacceptable, and grounds for complaint, and possible legal action. No, I don't like frost on the floor when I wake up, but nor do I like sweating in bed because the room is too warm. For the record, I do rent, and I pay the utility bill, and for most of the year, we simply turn the furnace off, as it is not necessary. We don't have A/C, so we open windows if it gets too warm. It sounds like you do not have good relations with your tenants, and are acting like a control freak as a result. I would suggest that good communications might work better. If you implement draconian measures without proper communication, do not be surprised when the tenants defeat those measures, especially if they are unreasonable in the first place. Note that there are ways of adding additional thermostats to act as limit switches to limit minimum and maximum temperature, but those limits need to be set to reasonable settings sufficient to prevent property damage, or excessive energy use, without excessively limiting the tenants control of their environment. If you are offering to pay utilities as part of the rental contract, you need to be willing to accept that some people like to live in different environments than others, which means that some people are going to want to set the thermostat higher than others. Setting the thermostat to the absolute minumum is not what I consider to be a friendly action. If you have problems with people heating the space to 95 degrees, install a limiting sensor to restrict it to 75, or renegotiate the rental contract, and have the tenant pay for their own utilities. If I am comfortable at 60 degrees, I am going to set the thermostat to 60 degrees.. ditto for 75 degrees.. I can see not wanting the temprature to drop below freezing, which can be acomplished with a second thermostat set for a low limit, like 50 degrees, in parallel with the first, but I can see no valid reason to restrict the tenants choice of the temprature of their environment. -- -- Welcome My Son, Welcome To The Machine -- Bob Vaughan | techie @ tantivy.net | | P.O. Box 19792, Stanford, Ca 94309 | -- I am Me, I am only Me, And no one else is Me, What could be simpler? -- |
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#28
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Earl Proulx the handyman had a solution for that. He put a second therm on
the baseboard behind the couch, set it, and left the other one unwired. You, too, can do the same. -- Christopher A. Young Do good work. It's longer in the short run but shorter in the long run. .. .. wrote in message ups.com... Thanks for the replies everyone! The actual intent of the thermostat is to benefit my grandfather's health. They have central air conditioning and he does not understand that if he turns the system off, it takes all day to cool the house again. He is suffering from a few health problems that go along with his age (90), and we would like to keep the house climate as controlled as possible since the heat definitely causes him problems. I've searched a little more and will be checking the link or 2 posted above. I've seen a few secure thermostats that range from about ~$80 to ~$300 so without a little more research, I'm not sure what we'll decide on just yet. P.S. it's not a *drastic* problem, it's just that when he messes with the thermostat letting the house get up to 90, he's more or less jeopardizing his health. |
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#29
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"Bob Vaughan" wrote in message ... In article , FDR wrote: "Bob Vaughan" wrote in message ... In article , FDR wrote: "Bob Vaughan" wrote in message ... In article , FDR wrote: wrote in message oglegroups.com... I was just wondering if there were any tamper proof thermostats widely available for residential use? I'm talking about possibly a digital readout that would require a code so that others cannot alter the settings. Please post any links or info, Thanks! They do sell locks to place over the meter. Used to use them when we had tenants. what sort of tenants? If it is a roommate/shared housing situation, then cooperation is in order to find a mutually agreeable temprature. If its not a shared housing situation, what gives you the right to dictate the temprature of your tenants living quarters? The law here says what the minimum heating temperature is. What exactly does the law say? I suspect it says something along the lines of "must be capable of sustaining a temprature of XX degrees", not that you must force your tenants to live at a temprature of XX degrees.. It's been a while so I don't recall the exact temp., but it's to the effect that the temperature can't be lower than 60 degrees. So the thermostat get's set to xx degrees. I know that If I was renting a property, and the landlord tried restricting what temprature I could set the unit to, I would be complaining very loudly until the issue was resolved. I would forcibly remove the security cover if necessary. Well, this is the reason we don't rent anynore. You aren't the one paying the heating bill. We are. If you think that you can set it to 90 and we should lose money then you're mistaken. My concern is being able to set the thermostat to a temperature that is comfortable to me. If you are paying for utilities, and try locking the thermostat, we are going to have problems. If the temperature is too high, You are going to end up heating the outdoors as I open windows to cool off. And if I don't set it to the right minimum temp I get in trouble with the law. If it is too low (and we are not talking 75+), you are going to be paying for the power to run the space heaters necessary to keep the environment at a comfortable temperature. Either way, you are going to be paying more than if you simply allowed me to control my own environment. It'setup that each apartment pays their own electricity. But there's only one furnace, so you would pay us to supply thr hrat. For what it's worth, I tend to set my thermostat slightly lower than a lot of people, and I like to turn it down when I go to bed. There's a setting for day and night. I have been in a number of places where the temperature was set too high, and where it was uncomfortably warm as a result. Paying to live in an environment that is uncomfortable to me because the landlord won't allow me to control the temperature is simply unacceptable, and grounds for complaint, and possible legal action. You'd lose in my jurisdiction. No, I don't like frost on the floor when I wake up, but nor do I like sweating in bed because the room is too warm. For the record, I do rent, and I pay the utility bill, and for most of the year, we simply turn the furnace off, as it is not necessary. We don't have A/C, so we open windows if it gets too warm. It sounds like you do not have good relations with your tenants, and are acting like a control freak as a result. Actually, wen we rented we were on the low side of the rent scale. But tenants like to take advantage of you...late payment, no payment, bringing in extra apartment dwellers, ruining walls, carpets, being loud, skipping out, you name it. And that's before the whole lock situation. Maybe you live in tenant eutopia, but this was in a bad neighborhood and no daily oversight. I would suggest that good communications might work better. That's a good one. If you could find them after they left without paying the rent. If you implement draconian measures without proper communication, do not be surprised when the tenants defeat those measures, especially if they are unreasonable in the first place. The law demands it. Note that there are ways of adding additional thermostats to act as limit switches to limit minimum and maximum temperature, but those limits need to be set to reasonable settings sufficient to prevent property damage, or excessive energy use, without excessively limiting the tenants control of their environment. If you are offering to pay utilities as part of the rental contract, you need to be willing to accept that some people like to live in different environments than others, which means that some people are going to want to set the thermostat higher than others. Setting the thermostat to the absolute minumum is not what I consider to be a friendly action. If you have problems with people heating the space to 95 degrees, install a limiting sensor to restrict it to 75, or renegotiate the rental contract, and have the tenant pay for their own utilities. If I am comfortable at 60 degrees, I am going to set the thermostat to 60 degrees.. ditto for 75 degrees.. I can see not wanting the temprature to drop below freezing, which can be acomplished with a second thermostat set for a low limit, like 50 degrees, in parallel with the first, but I can see no valid reason to restrict the tenants choice of the temprature of their environment. -- -- Welcome My Son, Welcome To The Machine -- Bob Vaughan | techie @ tantivy.net | | P.O. Box 19792, Stanford, Ca 94309 | -- I am Me, I am only Me, And no one else is Me, What could be simpler? -- |
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