# What is a good temperature for an office building **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 19, 2006, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692 "2006-01-19T18:43:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2006, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/1 "2006-01-19T18:43:04Z")
The Facts: It is cubicle city here at TransUnion in Crum Lynne, PA. Outside temp is 40 degress. Inside temp is 78. At 75 a few folks (including a director) balked that it was ‘chilly’. Maintenance man bullied into raising temps. Coolest area of floor displays 76.5 degrees. My hands are sweaty. Feet soaked. I have pleaded to set the thermostat at 72 degrees…a very normal temp. I cannot work like this. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2006, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/2 "2006-01-19T18:59:36Z")
> [@Philster](#): > > The Facts: > > It is cubicle city here at TransUnion in Crum Lynne, PA. > > Outside temp is 40 degress. > > Inside temp is 78. > > At 75 a few folks (including a director) balked that it was ‘chilly’. > > Maintenance man bullied into raising temps. > > Coolest area of floor displays 76.5 degrees. > > My hands are sweaty. Feet soaked. > > I have pleaded to set the thermostat at 72 degrees…a very normal temp. > > I cannot work like this. 72 would barely be tolerable for me, but what you’re experiencing is typical in my building, too. I keep a high-powered fan on me at all times in my office because my coworkers insist on having the heat turned up. Most people don’t get the concept that it’s easier to layer up than layer down. But personally, I think that a consistent 70 degrees would be ideal for everyone to adjust to. ---
**Author:** ![Debaser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3da27b/32.png) [@Debaser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Debaser)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2006, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/3 "2006-01-19T19:06:52Z")
78 degrees is way too hot to work in. That’s completely nuts. 70-72 is normal. ---
**Author:** ![robardin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@robardin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robardin)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2006, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/4 "2006-01-19T19:09:06Z")
78 is absurd. Does anybody heat their own house to anything higher than 72? I would say that 72 should be a “normal” office temp, and I would prefer to see 70. Especially in an office where there is a dress code requiring long sleeve shirts and/or ties. You can always layer on a sweater if you want, but there is a limit to how far down one can strip. Being slightly chilly keeps one awake and burns more calories, which is good. Being too warm is uncomfortable and makes people drowsy and potentially stinky, which is bad. How about this? Bring in a small air circulator/ionizer machine (not a fan… you’ll see why) to put in your cubicle, to help you deal with the overheating. Then the next time you’re on vacation for a while, surreptitiously swap it in for an equally small humidifier. They want 78? Let’s see how they like it at 78 with 50% humidity. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2006, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/5 "2006-01-19T19:49:04Z")
I wish I were making this up. I’m surrounded by women who are wearing spring attire in the winter. I just checked the thermostat on the column next to my cube. We are holding steady over here at 77.5, as the sun has made it’s way across the souther sky, warming up this side of the building even more. Searching for cooler areas, I find a low of 76.5 and one of my direct reports stopped me to tell me she is having hot flashes. I showed her the thermostat in her area. Now I have to play bad guy and get everyone together on this, because the maintenance guy is reacting to miscellaneous comments. He should look at the damn temp and set it at 70-72. Unbelievable. I know I am not crazy. 72 is quite warm, pushing the max that anyone would set their heat to. 77…78…and climbing…insane. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2006, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/6 "2006-01-19T20:09:09Z")
I would kill for 72. Hell, I’d kill for the 78 some of you are talking about. You know what my average work temp is? 1. Yes, 83. My office/shop is in the maintenace area, and shares a wall with the boiler room. I _used_ to have AC. When I first started here in November of ‘04, the AC kept it between 70 and 75, just fine. But then, for seemingly no reason\*, they took it away before summer. It pretty much stays at 83. I’ve had spikes up to 85, and once a low at 79. \*The actual AC unit itself that cooled my room was about twenty feet from my door, on the opposite wall in the maintenance area. As far as I can tell, they removed it to do notihng more than make some storage space. The damn thing only took up about 3’x4’ of floor space. It also cooled the maintence secretary’s office, but when that was removed, they just added his line to the unit that cools the maintence director’s and assistant director’s offices. But mine is too far away from there to easily put a line in from, and there would be too much loss in that pipe, and the AC for all of us would be less effective. Boo hoo. You get 70, and I get shafted at 83. How about we compromise and all get 75? Argh. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2006, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/7 "2006-01-19T20:10:32Z")
Oh, man, I wish. We don’t have heat in this building, because we’re all fresh and modern and built by a freaking Florida architect. It’s okay now, but generally speaking it’s damned cold in here. We have air, sure, it runs all year. Sometimes (even usually) it feels like it’s down around 63 or so. I keep a little heater at my desk, and a blankie. ---
**Author:** ![YaWanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/bbce88/32.png) [@YaWanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YaWanna)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2006, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/8 "2006-01-19T20:13:42Z")
68 (F) is good. Too cold or too hot makes people unproductive, but at 68, I’m usually just right. I work with post-menopausal women - they’re all always fighting over the thermostat, and only 2 of us even understand the concept of how they work. The others just push the damn thing to one extreme or the other all the time. It’s enough to make you want to beat people. I keep a fan **and** a space heater in my office. Self-preservation. ---
**Author:** ![yellowval](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/919ad9/32.png) [@yellowval](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowval)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2006, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/9 "2006-01-19T20:23:47Z")
Ours never goes above 68 (nor does my thermostat at home). 78 is utterly ridiculous, especially considering the high cost of heating these days. At the beginning of the winter, my boss talked to all of us and reminded us to dress warmly, because the heat would not be turned up under any circumstances, due to high heating costs. I don’t think I’ve even heard it kick on today, and I’m perfectly comfortable in a light sweater. If I were you, I’d find out how much the company would save if you turned the heat down to 70, graph it out, and give it to your boss. Then encourage her/him to notify everyone that the office temeprature will be lowered and to dress accordingly. There’s no reason people need to wear spring/summer clothes in the dead of winter. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2006, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/10 "2006-01-19T20:37:27Z")
I am now at 86 degrees with 25% relative humidty. Just got a digital thermometer at lunch. OSHA guidelines: 30-60% rel hum 68-74.5 in winter I just want a reasonable temp. I’ll split the difference and agree to 70 degrees. I don’t even want invoke my opinions. I am just going to state some facts. Touchy subject. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2006, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/11 "2006-01-19T20:40:14Z")
> [@Philster](#): > > OSHA guidelines: > > 30-60% rel hum > > 68-74.5 in winter Really? They have guidlines about what the max temp should be? Are these enforceable, or just recomended? I’d love to go up to the maintenance director and tell him he has to cool my office or he’ll be in violation of some code somwhere. ---
**Author:** ![Lips\_Obsession](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/bbce88/32.png) [@Lips\_Obsession](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lips_Obsession)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2006, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/12 "2006-01-19T20:49:00Z")
I work in an older building (built in the '40’s or 50’s) and the heating/cooling system seems to have been installed at the same time. We’re always fighting to get a reasonable temperature in the office, especially when the seasons change. We’ve been told that for some odd reason, the heating/cooling system bases it’s actions on the OUTSIDE temperature, not the temperature inside. Earlier this winter season, we alternated freezing/broiling, with temperatures in the low 60’s or mid 80’s. Things have stabilized recently and we’re in the low to mid 70’s now. I’m sure when the spring weather gets closer, things will go bonky again (as it does every year) and we’ll start broiling/freezing again… I’d be very happy at 70-72 degrees… ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2006, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/13 "2006-01-19T21:44:36Z")
OSHA guidelines are based off the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), who developed a voluntary standard (ASHRAE 55-1981) ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2006, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/14 "2006-01-19T22:03:44Z")
> [@](#): > > **As a general rule, office temperature and humidity are matters of human comfort. OSHA has no regulations specifically addressing temperature and humidity in an office setting.** However, Section III, Chapter 2, Subsection V of the OSHA Technical Manual, “Recommendations for the Employer,” provides engineering and administrative guidance to prevent or alleviate indoor air quality problems. Air treatment is defined under the engineering recommendations as, “the removal of air contaminants and/or the control of room temperature and humidity.” \*\*OSHA recommends temperature control in the range of 68-76° F and humidity control in the range of 20%-60%. \*\* Source: [http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show\_document?p\_table=INTERPRETATIONS&p\_id=24602](http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=INTERPRETATIONS&p_id=24602) But then again, … > [@](#): > > **Office Temperature Linked to Typing Performance - 10/22/2004** > > Tell your employer to turn up the heat! A new study links cold office temperatures to typing errors and slow keyboarding output. > > If your office is too cold, chances are that you might not be typing as accurately, or as much, as you could be, says Dr. Alan Hedge, an ergonomics professor at Cornell University. In a landmark study evaluating the impact of indoor environmental conditions on worker productivity, Hedge found a 74 percent increase in typing mistakes and a 46 percent reduction in typing output when office temperatures fell from 77 degrees F to 68 degrees F. The findings were presented at the 2004 Eastern Ergonomics Conference in New York City. Source: [http://www.occupationalhazards.com/articles/12545](http://www.occupationalhazards.com/articles/12545) ---
**Author:** ![Millit\_the\_Frail](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/51bf81/32.png) [@Millit\_the\_Frail](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Millit_the_Frail)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2006, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-good-temperature-for-an-office-building/340692/15 "2006-01-20T04:29:38Z")
> [@](#): > > What is a good temperature for an office building? About ten degrees higher than the temperature in mine. I have no idea what it is, but despite the fact that I’m in one of the warmer offices, my officemate and I are always wearing two or three shirts and putting our coats over our laps. ☹