🍃[FESTIVAL] Unlocking your thermostat🍃

[Jennifer3225]

The Ups and Downs of Sustainability 

With Felicity Stevens Australia 🇦🇺 @Felicity11  and Jennifer Schnier 🇨🇦 (HAB 2022-2023)

“Unlocking your thermostat can significantly reduce your emissions.”

Highlights

• Trust is already established when you accept an Airbnb booking.
• Unlocking your thermostat will give guests greater control of their space.
• The goal of all hosting experiences is to keep guests comfortable.

Thoughts from Up North  Myth

“I have to keep my thermostat locked, otherwise the guests will jack up the heat”.

Truth

“Not allowing your guests to control the temperature, may mean your hard earned money is going out the window… literally”

Where is the logic in that?

As hosts we welcome guests from international and local areas throughout the globe. What is more is that as hosts we welcome people from various backgrounds, families, ethnicities and cultures.

The old saying, “Different strokes for different folks”, couldn’t be truer when you consider how people sleep, live and regulate their own body’s temperatures.

• Guests for various reasons may choose to have their time in your listing enjoyed by different temperatures than what a regulated (locked) thermostat may provide.

• Some people like to sleep in the cool, and others in the warmth.

• Guests won’t have the choice to turn down the heat or decrease the Air Conditioning if they go out.

• Guests will open the windows if the temperature is not right.. And your energy will go right out the window.

• Guests won’t feel they are truly renting a home, but rather a controlled environment.

Thoughts from Down Under 

Down under we don’t say thermostat we call it air conditioning or central heating. 

Most homes in Australia and New Zealand do not have the capacity to lock in a temperature for heating or cooling so it is up to the guests to switch it on and set the temperature.  For many international guests they may not realize that you do not need to leave the air conditioning or heating on during the day when they are out.  Many people also do not realize that for every degree that you increase or decrease the temperature the impact on your power bill can rise significantly. 

I suggest you leave a note beside the controls with suggested temperatures for the different times of the year and a gentle reminder note beside the front door asking guests to switch this off when they go out.

To help guests feel comfortable do add extra cotton or wool blankets for not just bedding but also to curl up on a couch or chair, to your listing so guests will need less heating or cooling. 

To help retain the heating and cooling efficiency of your home I suggest hosts do the following:

• Add thermal backed curtains and blinds that cover the entire window area
• Ensure your home has been adequately draft proofed. You may like to consider adding rubber window seals to ensure less heat is lost or gained.
• Add floor coverings such as rugs and carpet.  This will help retain the heat and feel nice under foot
• Add ceiling and under floor insulation if possible.
• If you are considering upgrading your  heating/cooling look for the most energy efficient models on the market. 

General tips for improving home efficiency

• Consider the colour of your home and its ability to reflect or absorb heat. In Australia and other warm nations there is evidence to show that homes that have lighter coloured roofs and sides absorb less heat and also help alleviate heat map spots. 
• If upgrading your home appliances consider switching out gas cooking and heating.  Cooking on induction cooktops not only emits less heat into the room and uses less energy but also cuts out harmful gasses that come from cooking on gas.   

What do we want to know from you?

1. Do you guests control the temperature?
2. How do you make sure guests are not too hot or cold?
3. Is there something unique your country does to help guests?

Let us know! Join the conversation.

[Felicity11]

Hi Mike and Kerry 

that sounds like an interesting way to control the temperature for guests and keep bills to a sensible level..  What is the feedback from guests are they happy enough or do many ask for you to adjust  the temp up or down?  Some guests are so considerate while others make you wonder if they have ever paid a power bill or have any consideration for the power they are using  and what it takes to generate that power! 

[John5097]

@Felicity11 
@Mike-And-Jane0 

I'm guessing they're heating a historic dwelling. While charming they can be totally unique and require more oversight. 

For example my total utility bill for electric and gas is never over $150 US per month. While an older house, or in colder climate,  may be over 4x that much and be burning fossil fuels. (The total cost for my guest apartment is about $20 per month extra, which is mostly for extra water) 

Then consider the energy crisis with the war in parts of Europe, where some of our regular CC host have said they may not even have heat or hot water. 

Airbnb could also offer incentives for host to convert to renewable sources such as solar power, for example, instead of multi million dollar prizes for most unique new listings. Our energy provider does offer incentives and rebates. I got a $1000 rebate for energy star compliance. They also have a renewable energy program customers can opt into, although it may cost more, it helps pay for solar farms, as it may not be practical to install panels on a house or may not be insured. 

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@John5097 Our heating bill for the apartments came to £7000 last year. This is an increase by a factor close to 3 due to the Ukraine war. 
As you say the Georgians and Victorians didn't build very efficiently with solid brick walls and large single glazed windows.

Actually Airbnb did offer $1m (might have been £) for UK hosts to improve their energy efficiency. We spent £7000 on double glazing for 1 apartment and hope to get £3000 from Airbnb which, if we do, will be much appreciated.

[John5097]

@Mike-And-Jane0 

Wow thats really impressive you installed double glazed windows. Hopefully they are making a difference! 

For the first 35 years of my life every placed I lived was built before 1850. Evan apartments in college. Everyone did. And in this area they aren't set up for cold snaps so pipes often burst, etc. That's just how it was and no one complained and was just kind of drafty and cold. 

But so beautiful! 

Hosting is a really great way to start earning some extra income. It requires responsibility and great communication. 

These are some of my renovations and improvements. When I first started the renovation I didn't even plan on Airbnb, but by the time I got to the windows I had. I happened to find them 60% off and installed them myself. If you haven't already the expanding spray foam between the window casing and frame really cuts down on drafts, probably more so than even the double pane glazing. Can just remove trim and fill voids with foam (someone else might find it useful.)

Here are some pics. I also installed the ductless mini split. The have a valve and variable speed so designed to run all the time for highest effeceny, and running a microwave for 2 minutes would be equivalent of running mini split heat pump for 2 hours. 

I'd really like to take 6 moths off and renovate or build another rental unit up in the mountains, as I need a place to evacuate to, because at some point my coastal house will be completely swept away, so that only a drive way is left and no trace of the house. 

[Felicity11]

Those windows look beautiful and the expanding foam sounds like a great way to cut down on drafts  great tip.  

[Felicity11]

Hi @Mike-And-Jane0 

Great to hear about your experience with the Airbnb energy efficiency program.  Have you had a chance to compare any bills from a previous year to now having these upgrades. I understand the prices for energy have increased significantly however if you check the energy consumption has this decreased eg the kW hours or BTU's.    Have you notice much of a difference living in the home since the upgrades?

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Felicity11 It's too early to tell on the bills front. Also we only meter the 3 apartments together not separately (for tax reasons) so I doubt 1 apartment having double glazing will be easily noticeable when we also have varying outside temperatures and occupancy rates.

What we can see however is a much more comfortable environment whereby the drafts from the poorly fitting ancient windows and single glazing have gone.

Our bills must reduce but our carbon footprint will not as we have a biomass boiler heating our house and the apartments - I guess we will save the electricity to push the hot water around the radiators and the diesel to deliver less fuel.

[Sarah5000]

Thanks for sharing, yes I let my guest to control but I post a note next the switch to them " Save the earth please turn off at departure." 

[Felicity11]

Great idea Sarah - do you also give suggested temperatures for guest to use during the year? 

[Karen114]

I am in Florida and use the Nest Learning thermostat.  I like it because when the guest is out of the unit for the day it goes into Eco mode.

As someone that needed to replace 2 AC units because the guest froze them out by turning the AC too low and sliders open,  I do have parameters set that they can control between those parameters.  AC low is 69. 

I have had guests request the AC to be set at 65 which to me is ludicrous.  If you need it that cold than you should probably rethink visiting Florida and head to Iceland instead.  Every room has a ceiling fan as well. 

It has been less than 60 degrees and outside and guest has requested AC on.  The Nest will not turn on if outdoor temp is below 60 degrees. 

[Jennifer3225]

Hi Karen

I am seeing a great deal of people using the nest. Seems to be working for people, and I love that is has a range and lock outs.. 

[John5097]

@Jennifer3225 @Karen114 

Yes great post. I"m in coastal South Carolina so identical climate. 

I also have the Nest Learning thermostat. But disable all the learning features by toggling them off. 

If I recall correctly it only knows when you are home or not from the location of the phone that the app is installed. 

I think it best to just leave it at one temp within a range. If guest wants to adjust it down a few degrees at night they can do that. 

But I find the Nest very intuitive and easy to program to however you want. 

[Felicity11]

HI @John5097

Great to hear more about your experience using Nest. Do you know of many other hosts who are also using this and finding it is working well for them and helping keep energy use under control?

[John5097]

@Felicity11  yes Nest seems to be the top recommendation by other host for STR. 

As mentioned the primary function is to set the range and control the heat/ac remotely. 

As far as cost savings or energy savings, I think its a built in setting that most people don't realize. Most other modern digital thermostats try and keep the temp at about .5 degrees to whatever its set at and the Nest seems to be about 1 degrees. Something you wouldn't noitice but it prevents the AC/heat from cycling on and off as frequently. AC and heat pumps, as well as most appliances, have a huge power surge right when they start then drop 90% when it's running. 

The thermostat can help some.  Just that may save 10%. But if the AC/heat system isn't installed and sized appropriately nothing will fix it. 

New construction, new houses, are usually so well insulated that they require a AC/heat unit, half the size of older dwelling. If it's oversized it will be cheaper to replace it with one that's the right size, because it will be "short cycling".  

Thats why mini splits are designed to run continouly for best energy savings and why it's probably best for guest to just leave it at one setting, unless its going to be unoccupied for more than 24 hours.  

For STR I toggled all the learning features off because it's using the phone the app is installed on to determine if it's occupied or not. And let's say its Spring and warm inside, and guest turns it down 2 degrees, but the "learning" feature turns it back up. Then guest will turn it all the way down.

Instead just make it simple and straightrforwad. 

[Felicity11]

The nest system sounds like it would work well for many hosts to help control temperatures and also help reduce bills.   E