Hi All,

I have electric baseboard heat in our home, and each room is controlled separately. And this may sound dumb... do I need to have the heat set at a certain minimum temperature for the winter? (we live in MN)

Also, is it more cost efficient for me keep them in each room on at a lower temperature continuously or shut them completely off each morning as I leave the house? Is it OK if were not using a room to keep it completely off? If anyone has any advice or websites to get more information on this, that would be great!

Thanks

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Originally Posted by sanborna

Hi All,

I have electric baseboard heat in our home, and each room is controlled separately. And this may sound dumb..... do i need to have the heat set at a certain minimum temperature for the winter? (we live in MN)

Also, is it more cost efficient for me keep them in each room on at a lower temperature continuously or shut them completely off each morning as I leave the house? Is it ok if were not using a room to keep it completely off? If anyone has any advice or websites to get more information on this, that would be great!

Thanks

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No certain minimum temp. to have it set on. Your thermostat probably only goes down to about 50* anyway(Might be a bit chilly at that temp). Of course, if you want to prevent pipes and such from freezing while you are gone from the residence for extended periods, then make sure to leave the heat on. I would not shut any room completely off unless it is not going to be used at all. You would then have to heat everything in that room up again when you come home and that costs more than just lowering the thermostat 5 or 10 degrees when you leave.

Great! Thanks for responding! : )

I would just like to add, interior walls are not insulated. Other rooms you are trying to heat are just supplementing the rooms you have set all the way down. The greater the disparity in temp from one room to the next the faster the heat will travel to cold.

Somewhat true, but you would have to weigh that against the cost savings of shutting down that rooms heater. One less zone to have to satisfy and even if the room is only say, 10' X 10', 100 Sq. Ft. less to heat is nothing to sneeze at...

It is very hard to predict how much harder the zones (around the turned down room) have to work because the heat is radiating so fast to that area. Non insulated walls you know.

Only your utility bill will tell...

Turn the thing clear off. It is on the outside wall, and the colder it is, the less heat you will lose out the outside wall. If you don't have enough heat flow in from the other rooms to keep it at least 50 on the outside wall, then turn it on low. That will keep the plaster in good shape and give you a good margin for any water pipes.