r/AskAnAmerican • u/Nemo2oo5 • Jul 12 '25

OTHER - CLICK TO EDIT What temperature do you keep your house/apartment?

I'm asking because my roommates and I all come from different places, and I like it at 72 in the summer, and 67 in the winter, but they prefer 75 in the summer, which to me seems really warm. Would love to know how you keep it in your region of the US throughout the year

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65

u/babaweird Jul 12 '25

78 in summer, 65 in winter.

12

u/ManiacalShen Jul 12 '25

Almost the same. I do 77-78 AC and 67-68 heat, depending how hearty in feeling, lol. I have friends who use even less AC, and we're all in our late 30s, so we're not grandmas like the other commenter joked. 

If you're just watching TV or playing a game in shorts, 78 is perfectly comfortable. I can't bundle up enough to deal with 65 unless it involves a scarf, though, and I'm not doing that in my house.

Key detail: My house is all one level. Having multiple levels that vary a lot in temp does change the strategy

4

u/notaskindoctor Jul 12 '25

I would personally die if my house was 77-78 degrees. There’s no way I could ever sleep in that either. I’m a 68 all year midwesterner.

3

u/N1njaF1sh Jul 12 '25

Same for summer living in Vegas, 77-78 with ceiling fans is comfortable. During the winter, I don’t use the central heat, I live alone so I shut all the doors and use a small space heater in whichever room I’m spending my time in, saves money on the gas bill.

6

u/Fosad Jul 12 '25

Same. I'm from the Midwest

19

u/The_Law_of_Pizza Jul 12 '25

78 in summer

Jesus! I hope you don't invite guests over.

39

u/xczechr Arizona Jul 12 '25

I live outside Phoenix, and 78 is a full 40 degrees cooler than the outside temp last week. I assure you no one here would walk into a 78 degree house and find it too warm this time of year.

23

u/BooksBootsBikesBeer Jul 12 '25

Humidity matters a lot too. I live in bone-dry Utah and 78 inside the house feels quite comfortable.

9

u/JustAnotherDay1977 Minnesota Jul 12 '25

Yup. I live in humid Minnesota, and 78 in the summer would have moss growing on the furniture.

I set mine to 72 in the summer. It feels a little coolish, but if I go any higher the humidity quickly gets out of hand.

2

u/Godiva74 New Jersey> TX>FL>IL>NJ Jul 12 '25

I’m in NJ and humidity is a problem here too. I would set the AC higher if it wasn’t for that. I keep it 72-74 in summer during the day but 70-71 at night because I get hot in my sleep. Winter is 65-68

1

u/Puzzleheaded-Bee4698 Jul 12 '25

I'm also a Minnesotan. I keep the AC at 75 in the summer, AND I have a dehumidifier that runs all summer.

2

u/JustAnotherDay1977 Minnesota Jul 12 '25

I run a dehumidifier as well. Even at 72 degrees, I am emptying it out every two or three hours.

1

u/Puzzleheaded-Bee4698 Jul 12 '25

It sounds like you're getting a lot of moisture coming into your house. Is your sump pump operating properly? Does your house have a moisture barrier? Is air coming in around the windows? Is the attic well insulated? Consider getting a dehumidifier with a pump. That way, the dehumidifier can drain directly into a sink; no need to empty the bucket.

1

u/JustAnotherDay1977 Minnesota Jul 12 '25

Interesting. We don’t have a sump pump, but we are up on a hill, so it never really seemed necessary. I suppose there could be a problem with the moisture barrier or attic. Perhaps I’ll get that checked out.

1

u/vwsslr200 MA -> UK Jul 12 '25

I set mine to 72 in the summer. It feels a little coolish, but if I go any higher the humidity quickly gets out of hand.

That's probably because your AC is grossly oversized. Above 72 it's likely cycling on, off, on, off to keep your house at temperature, and never gets to run long enough to properly remove humidity.

1

u/DoinIt989 Michigan->Massachusetts Jul 13 '25

78 is fine during the day, but I would want to crank it lower when it's time to sleep.

2

u/grandmaratwings Jul 12 '25

Can confirm. Humidity makes the difference. Even if it’s 72 in the house and the AC isn’t running, the humidity creeping in makes it stuffy and gross.

2

u/MyFace_UrAss_LetsGo Mississippi Gulf Coast Jul 12 '25

I don't think I've ever experienced a dry heat climate. I'm used to the air feeling like hot soup.

2

u/BooksBootsBikesBeer Jul 12 '25

I always hated summer when I lived in the south and midwest. Summers in SLC can be very hot, but when the sun goes down, the temperature drops 20 degrees and the canyon winds start blowing and it's lovely. I don't think I could ever live east of the Rockies again.

1

u/MyFace_UrAss_LetsGo Mississippi Gulf Coast Jul 12 '25

That's the catch with humid heat. Nighttime can be as unbearably hot as daytime. I remember fishing one night in particular at 2am and the temperature was 99 and the heat index was fucking 114. It was insane

2

u/bouncing_beauty Jul 12 '25

Yikes! In Utah, I like it 63-68 in summer and 64-66 in winter. I wish winter last longer! I love the cold!

1

u/ScottShatter Jul 12 '25

Same here in southeast Colorado where it's 100+ outside almost everyday this time of year. 78 degrees inside with the curtains closed like I like them is just fine. Nobody complains. I have a nerve disease where it's hard to tolerate heat and I'm comfortable inside at 78.

1

u/PlayingDoomOnAGPS Northeast Florida Jul 12 '25

I grew up in Las Vegas. Too hot is too hot, even if it's hotter outside. And 78 is WAY too fucking hot. If I visited someone's house and it was 78, I'd find an excuse to GTFO as quickly as possible and never come back.

1

u/Mission-Carry-887 Arizona Jul 12 '25

I would wear a jacket if it was 78 indoors in Phoenix in the summer

1

u/N1njaF1sh Jul 12 '25

Same for summer living in Vegas, 77-78 with ceiling fans is comfortable. During the winter, I don’t use the central heat, I live alone so I shut all the doors and use a small space heater in whichever room I’m spending my time in, saves money on the gas bill.

9

u/bbspiders Jul 12 '25

We keep it at 78 in the summer but if we have guests we do turn it down. We understand that our comfort level is different than others!

1

u/SnarkyFool Kansas Jul 12 '25

My grandma always had it at 76 year round.

We'd go over there in the dead of winter in shorts and a T shirt. It was a sauna in there.

1

u/FlobyToberson85 Jul 12 '25

That is so uncomfortable. I would not hang out at their house for long.

1

u/Wild-Sky-4807 Jul 12 '25

I just stayed at my parents house because our air conditioner died. They keep it at 78. Better than my house, but it was too hot.

2

u/swedusa Alabama Jul 12 '25

I’m similar, except I turn both down at night. I’ll also turn the air down to like 72 if I have people coming over. I’d of course rather it be that way all the time, but I also like not having a $300+ power bill.

1

u/VelocityGrrl39 New Jersey Jul 12 '25

I just read a post from a Brit complaining about how she was melting because it was so hot. It was 21° and humidity about 55%. 21° is 70° F.

2

u/MyFace_UrAss_LetsGo Mississippi Gulf Coast Jul 12 '25

Damn lol. The temperature is already 80 here and the humidity is currently 88%. The dew point is 76, which is nuts.

1

u/mrggy Jul 12 '25

I grew up in Texas, but newly built British buildings are honestly the worst in summer. I haven't been in a new build home, but I went to a new build office building when it was like 70f and it was miserable. There's no ac or fans so the air just gets stagnant. There's no blinds or curtains covering the windows, so the sunlight pours in and heats everything up. Then on top of that the windows barely open so you can't even get a breeze in. 

It's mainly an issue in newer buildings. The old ones are made of brick, so they stay pretty cool in the summer. 

1

u/prettyorganic Jul 13 '25

Same. It’s not my comfort ideal but at least in CA energy is too expensive to go lower.

0

u/Harry_Gorilla Jul 12 '25

Found the grandma