What is Temperature?
The right temperature is a fundamental requirement of indoor air. The scientific definition of temperature is the degree of hotness. However, the ambient temperature and room temperature are also important in describing air quality conditions. Ambient temperature is the actual temperature of an environment or your surroundings, measured with a thermometer, while room temperature is the level at which most people feel comfortable.
Why do we need to monitor Temperature?
Temperature plays a significant role in our health and well-being. A 2011 World Health Organisation document provides evidence that the failure to regulate temperature can have a wide variety of negative physiological effects, including aggravating existing illnesses and causing disabilities. The ideal temperature level depends on a variety of factors, such as geographic location, season, environment, and activities of individual occupants in your home. For example, ideal summer temperatures in Asia will differ considerably from those in North America. The first reason to monitor it is to keep it at the optimal level that is comfortable for the occupants.
The second reason to monitor temperature is the several factors that cause variations in it. Some key parameters that directly affect temperature are:
- Air quality
- Ventilation
- Relative humidity
Even small changes in these factors can have a significant impact on the temperature. If you monitor the temperature continuously, you can easily make adjustments to your heating and cooling devices to maintain optimal temperature.
Although there are standard recommendations on temperature levels, it is important to remember that our bodies react to temperature differently. What may be comfortable for you may not be comfortable for your grandparents or your 2-year-old child.
What are the benefits of regulating temperature?
Improve Memory and Cognitive Function
By maintaining an optimal temperature, the body is spared the burden of regulating its temperature by its internal heater located in the brain. Reducing this strain reduces the risk of high blood pressure (Palo Alto, 2018). As well as improving blood flow to vital organs, maintaining optimal temperature also enhances your memory and alertness, and gives you sharper memory.
Prevent Growth of Harmful Pathogens
Aside from general discomfort, respiratory and allergic conditions may be aggravated by unsuitable temperatures. While high temperatures pose the risk of headaches, dizziness, and in extreme cases dehydration, heat stress and cardiovascular diseases, low temperatures have their own set of associated illnesses such as reduced resistance to respiratory infections and in extreme cases hypothermia. Regulating temperature also controls the growth of harmful bacteria, viruses, and disease-carrying insects.
Better Sleep, Reduced Stress, and Increased Productivity
Sleep quality and daytime performance are affected by the temperature. Researchers have found that people who sleep in hot environments have higher levels of stress hormone cortisol the next day. Meanwhile, people who sleep in colder environments tend to do better. Sleep disorders may in fact result from a disorder of the body’s heat-regulating cycles, meaning some cases of insomnia could be caused by the body’s inability to regulate its temperature.
What can be done to regulate temperature?
Ensure proper ventilation
By optimizing the airflow in the home and making sure the air vents and other openings that let air through are working correctly and adjusted correctly, you can enhance the temperature in your home. Maintaining the desired temperature becomes easier when the air vents are adjusted according to requirements.
Keep heating and cooling devices properly working
Devices, such as air conditioners, portable fans, ceiling fans, heaters, etc. that are specifically designed to regulate the ambient temperature can be very useful in controlling a space’s temperature. These devices can be adjusted to achieve the desired temperature. Maintaining these indoor air quality devices properly will ensure optimal performance to regulate temperature inside the home.
Improve insulation
Changing your window curtain, or even your blinds can have a significant impact on how much heat enters your home from external natural sources, such as sunlight. If the curtains are open wide, the warmth of the sun’s rays can fill the space, resulting in a warmer and toastier feeling, or the curtains can be closed to block out the heat waves for a cooler result.
Maintain optimum humidity
Adjusting temperature and humidity often goes hand-in-hand when it comes to ensuring good indoor air quality. High temperature increases the dryness of air, while low temperatures result to high levels of humidity. This is why it is important to measure and monitor both temperature and humidity.
How does uHoo help in regulating temperature?
In addition to providing accurate temperature readings in real-time, uHoo can integrate your heating and cooling devices to ensure that ideal temperatures are maintained even when you’re away. The temperature levels are measured and monitored, and the data is relayed to you in an easy-to-understand layout on the uHoo App.
uHoo can help you manage and take control of your indoor air quality:
- Measure and monitor all the important air quality parameters so you can create a healthier and safer home:
- Provide a real-time risk assessment of virus survival and transmission in the air with the uHoo Virus Index
- Easily integrate with your heating, ventilation and air cooling devices to manage your IAQ
References
- ASHRAE Standard: Thermal Environmental Conditions for Human Occupancy.
Cielo. (2020, July 27). Ideal Room Temperature. Retrieved from Cielo: https://www.cielowigle.com/blog/ideal-room-temperature/
ClimateCare. (2021, March 11). 5 Ways to Balance the Temperature of your House. Retrieved from Climate Care: https://www.climatecare.com/blog/5-ways-balance-temperature-around-house/
Palo Alto. (2018, August). Benefits of Ideal Home Temperature. Retrieved from Palo Alto: https://www.paloaltoplumbing.net/benefits-living-ideal-home-temperature
World Health Organisation. (2011). Information and Public Health Advice: Heat and Health. Retrieved from World Health Organisation: https://www.euro.who.int/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/147265/Heat_information_sheet.pdf
