New roommate and I are having some issues, which I think are partially due to cultural differences (I believe she is an international student from China, but I can’t be sure because she doesn’t speak to me and only speaks in a foreign language to her boyfriend).
One of these issues is that she likes the temperature really, really cold. We are in the southwest where it is 90-100 degrees right now and dry. I am used to the thermostat being at 78 and at the lowest 75. This girl however prefers it to be much much colder. Yesterday I had it set at 75 and after dinner I noticed it felt really cold in the apartment so I checked and she had switched it to 55! So I put it to 70 and went to bed. I did not sleep at all and shivered the whole night, when I woke up I looked at it and she had put it back, not to 55 but now 50 degrees. Please tell me that I’m not the only one thinking this is abnormal.
Not only is it literally freezing and very uncomfortable, but I cannot afford to pay for such a high electric bill when the temperature is set so low! I can’t talk to her about it because she doesn’t seem to understand English very well and I also can’t get her alone because her boyfriend has been here since Saturday and hasn’t left once. I’m not sure what to do
Let her know that 55 could freeze the compressor and break it.
Set the thermostat on 68 and compromise. Let her see if that is cool enough.
Show some compassion- When people are hot they are fussy and irritable and cannot sleep.
:) good luck. I know it is frustrating that you are both used to different temperature conditions. I personally would die if my husband made me keep the thermostat on 75 or even 70 at night. But 55 is crazy too.
When people are freezing they also can’t sleep- I tossed and turned all night and I was in my thick bathrobe and under all the covers! When she came out of her room she was wearing a sweatshirt and sweatpants so she obviously likes to be cold and then put layers on, which to me is frustrating because she could very easily wear a tshirt and shorts and keep it warmer instead. I am fine with compromising, which is why when she put it at 55 I put it to 70 instead of the original 75. Her response was to make it even lower. It doesn’t make sense to me and I’m not sure how to discuss this with her given the language barrier and her boyfriend who has been here for 48 hours
Figure out if she has the conversions internalized, and if she really means 55 F- if she hasn’t spent a lot of time in the States, she may not be used to conversions from Celsius to Fahrenheit yet.
@LovelyLashes It’s actually been scientifically proven that people sleep best when their head is at a temperature of around 63 degrees. The rest of their body needs to be warm, however. So if you are too cold all you need to do is add more covers so your head will be cool and your body warm; people cannot remove their skin if it’s too hot, however. Also, the things you are noticing about your roommate, she is keeping her body warm, but she is not keeping her head hot. It is the head that must be kept cold.
Put in a maintenance request. I’m not sure what kind of system you have but a heat pump can be set so it only gets as low as 65 degrees and you can limit how hot it will heat. I think it’s a limiter on the inside unit. Another thing you could do is purchase a thermostat lock from Amazon for about $11 and never give her the key. Setting the A/C below 65 on a hot day can freeze the compressor and cost you money to fix. And how the heck did this girl get into an American college if she doesn’t understand English?
@LovelyLashes I don’t have any good advice other than what you’ve heard but I do have sympathy for you! We keep our house at 78 and everybody is comfortable…but some folks can’t handle it. If it makes you feel any better, Consumer Reports (and pretty much everybody else), recommends 78.