Too Hot...Too Cold...Just Right

At what temperature are you comfortable?

In our family of six, my husband is typically hot; my eldest son is always cold; my youngest son is generally comfortable; my eldest daughter is often freezing; and my baby is a little heater.  I of course run at a perfectly normal temperature.  It brings to mind the story of Goldilocks. Given the varying preferences, it is challenging to set a home temperature that is agreeable to all.

When you share an office with colleagues and co-workers, you notice pretty quickly the variations from one person to the other.  Some of your co-workers will always have a sweater on.  Others will be in shirt sleeves all year round.  Some people's hands are always cold whereas other people sweat profusely on a constant basis.

As a landlord, it is an ongoing struggle to please everyone.  In my folks' building in Muskoka, the first step is to have each tenant agree on a temperature that each of their employees can live with.  The second is to install the proper heating for the space, typically through a gas powered furnace serving the entire area with plug in heaters to supplement the base heat and baseboard heaters for colder corners.  The third is to ensure that everyone is abiding by the agreed upon temperature.  Finally you ideally want to let the temperature drop or rise when the space is not occupied, typically at night and on the weekends.

If you are able to regulate the temperature at an agreed upon level and reduce drafty spaces for your tenants, they will generally be content.  Even controlling for the above, some will still wear their sweater year round while others will want to wear tank tops, but you as the landlord will have done your job...just right.