Abstract
This is a study of how indoor temperature settings have changed over time in the United States based on data from the Energy Information Administration’s, Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS). It is shown that Americans have moderately raised indoor temperature settings during the heating season over the past thirty years. It is also shown that most Americans keep their homes relatively cool in the summertime and are generally averse to implementing temperature setbacks. It is revealed that occupants in lower-income homes tend to set their thermostats higher in winter than other income groups, but that the most intense cooling tends to take place in both low-income and high-income homes. As expected, renters tend to heat and cool more intensively than homeowners. Getting Americans to change their temperature settings in order to save energy is not easy even though it comes with the promise of financial savings. The use of programmable thermostats thus far has proved unsuccessful. Greater utilization of social marketing to achieve energy savings is suggested, as well as a renewed effort on the part of electricity suppliers to work more closely with homeowners as part of the rollout of the “smart grid”.
Highlights
Despite an enormous amount of literature and analysis on household energy use, we still know relatively little about the dynamics of household energy decision making [1]
Information Administration (EIA) through its multi-year Residential Energy Consumption. Using both current and historical data from Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS), it will be shown that Americans have moderately raised indoor temperature settings during the heating season over the past thirty years, and that using the most recent data on indoor temperatures during the summertime, reveals a rather striking example of prolific energy use
If we place household energy use in a longer, historical perspective (Figure 2), we see that space conditioning roughly 30 years ago constituted an even larger component of energy use in the home, with space heating alone accounting for two thirds of overall energy use
Summary
Despite an enormous amount of literature and analysis on household energy use, we still know relatively little about the dynamics of household energy decision making [1]. The behavioral component of household energy use is critical to understanding energy use, but it usually takes a back. Sustainability 2013, 5 seat to engineering /technical studies of housing structure, technologies, and home weather-proofing. This article, in contrast, will explicitly address a household energy topic—indoor thermal comfort—. It will examine household temperature settings, in both a current and historical perspective, using publically available information provided by the Energy. Information Administration (EIA) through its multi-year Residential Energy Consumption
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