Why is it always colder upstairs in my apartment than downstairs?

Question

I live in a 2 story town house and it is always colder in the winter upstairs. Why? I thought heat rises. In the summer the up stairs always stays hot. I closed some of the vents down stairs and it still hasn't helped. There are fewer vents per room upstairs is that maybe why? We have already been setting the heat at 74 at night and it is so cold up stairs. During the day when i am downstairs I turn it to 70 and it's fine. What the heck can i do to control my bills this winter?

my building is not quite 2years old, so its not an old building. i still have 5 months left on my lease, so i can't move just yet.

Answer 1

It is because your thormustat is downstairs. Say you have it set to 72, the heat will kick on when it drops below this (around 70). The problem with this is that the upstairs gets much colder by the time it hits 70 on the main floor. You can move it to the coldest room in the house.

Answer 2

It could have something to do with the insulation. In my home my room would be sweltering hot in the summers and causing frostbite in winter. It turned out to be a really minor problem. Not enough insulation in the space by the a/c. All the good air would escape to the garage and recycle smelly garage air back into the house. Went to Lowe's, got some insulation.... Now it's always just right. And WOW, what a difference that made on the elec bill!!!! Over working the a/c caused it to freeze up, and the bill was insane!

Answer 3

First, get your heating system checked out. We had that happen, and part of the problem was that in our room, something was causing it to blow cold air regardless of what we had it set on (and for some reason, on hot days, cold days, when the heater or AC are on or off, one room is colder than the other, the temp won't rise above 60 degrees on cold days, and it won't rise lower than 80 degrees on warm days.

Smoke rises, but I don't know for sure about heat.

I'm not sure about the facts here, but I think the upstairs is less insulated than the bottom. The first floor is insulated top and bottom (ceiling/second floor AND the solid ground underneath.) The top floor has neither. A relatively thin floor with no foundation other than itself (therefore, very little insulation) is on one side, and the attic space is in the other. This explains why in warm months, it's hot, and in the colder months, it's cold.

To control your bills, first get your heat/air system checked out. Check for any problems that would cause drafts (cracks or holes, window panes, etc.). If you just can't get it to heat, turn it down. You know it's innaffective to run the heat constantly at night, and turning up the thermostat won't make it decide to start working. Keep it at a reasonable temp, but don't overwork it, trying to get it to do something it can't do.

Blankets, flannel pajamas, socks, slippers, portable heaters, hot tea before bed, throw your blanket/pajamas in the dryer and run for 15-20 minutes then hustle it back upstairs before they cool off, heating pads, etc.....

Hope you get it figured out.

Answer 4

It can be several things, 1. Poor insulation in walls and ceiling. 2. Windows. 3. Lack of Return Air Supplies on the 2nd floor. 4. Check your heat supply ducts for 'dampers'. You can adjust them to control air flow.
Contact a HVAC company in your town, ask if they have an individual that understands how to conduct a Heating & Cooling analysis for your home. That analysis will tell you the cooling load required to keep your home cool on a 95 degree day and the heat load necessary to mainatain a 70-74 degree temperature on a 'O' degree day. It will tell you the proper size of furnace and air conditioner necessary to provide you comfort. If a company tells you that only square footage is necessary to provide heating and cooling loads, find another company.
If your are renting the apartment, it might be difficult to have the owner listen to you.

Answer 5

Apartments I've lived in I always burnt up when I was upstairs and froze downstairs. You must have some kind of draft or the warm air is being forced down somehow.
You might want to check the seal around your downstairs windows and doors.

Answer 6

Town houses are great for this. The attic needs more insulation And you probably don't have cold air returns upstairs. You could move the thermostat up stairs.

Answer 7

Heat circulates from a ground source having absorbed heat during warm days and rises upwards: thats why the lower portions of a house are warmer that the upper floors.

Answer 8

I'm thinking your house is older and the ceiling is not insulated properly I would have someone check it out,or move if you can to a better insulated building.good luck

Answer 9

probably cuz the heater is in the downstairs and maybe in a secluded or isolated room.

Answer 10

you heating has broke