The above reminded me of a passage in one of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s pioneer books — they lived in a cabin built by her father and snow fell through cracks onto them as they slept. Their father shoveled them out of their snowy beds in the morning. They lived to tell about it and many more hardships.
Just because people lived through horrible conditions as kids or whatever doesn’t mean that most of us want to voluntarily sit and freeze or swelter, though.
If some sitters don’t mind, more power to them. They can have all such sits. But many of us expect reasonable, comfortable conditions. Happily, there also are many reasonable, hospitable hosts. Like my current one texted me today: “Good morning! I hear it is very cold there! Feel free to turn the heat up as much as you like.”
Cheers for hosts who understand hospitality and a fair exchange on THS. And of course as a good guest, I don’t abuse my host’s trust or hospitality. I have the temperature set as they normally do and have extra layers, winter house slippers and blankets to stay warm.
Actually, I can expect my basic requirements of a sit to be fulfilled. Otherwise I don’t take the sit. I’m certainly not required to sit at all. My expectation is that the accommodations in this exchange are clean and comfortable. In cold climates that would include heat. I’m in Chicago right now and it’s -10F / -23C, heat is not optional, it is literally required to survive. I arrived at my sit and the heat was set at 68F/20C. I’ve left it at that setting other than turning it down lower at night and when I go out.
I’ve done many sits in very cold areas and every single HO has told me to adjust the temperature as needed for my comfort. I always just leave it at their settings since they already have it set to a comfortable temperature.
If people choose to live with limited heat, that’s their choice. I don’t think it’s reasonable to expect a sitter to stay in unhealthy temperatures. If a HO can’t supply a stable heat source that keeps the home at a reasonably comfortable temperature (I’d say at least 64F during the day which is about 17.7C), they should disclose that in their listing. Some sitters might be fine with it, but there is no reason all sitters should be. Certainly sitters can and should ask, but I feel that heat is a basic requirement for a sit, not an optional amenity. I would not spend my money to travel to someone’s home to sit there and be miserable. HOs often choose me because I work at sits and am in the home most of the time. In order to work in the home and to care for and interact with the pets, I need to be comfortable.
I had an interesting one asking me not to use the main room light as it was ‘very expensive to run’. Trouble is, they knew I’d be working remotely during my sit, and the only place to sit was at the table in that room. They provided a small lamp on the table. It was winter, and generally gloomy and then dark early. After 30 minutes of squinting at my screen, the main light went on. Using their Smart meter I figured out it cost 4p an hour to run. So I’m afraid my naughty use of the light cost them £1.60 in total.
Currently in Sweden, with only Swedish ovens as a heating system. So we need to split wood every second day. I love it. Yes, it’s a lot of work, and yes, it’s not as convenient as turning the heating on. It’s a wooden house, and the upstairs is probably around 10 degrees, but the beds are wonderfully warm, and overall, it’s quite an experience. Not manageable alone, but fantastic as a couple. And the most incredible sky at night.
I’ve found this thread so interesting! Clearly, one person’s Freezing Cold is another’s Perfectly Fine…
I live in SW England and my heating is set to come on when the internal termperature reaches 14degs C. When it comes on, it heats the house to 16.5degs C. I find this comfortable. But I have friends who are astounded by that - it’s sub-artctic to them! - and refuse to set foot in my house between October and May.
I’ll only add that my set-up does depend on the availability of hot water, on demand. Take that out of the equation and I might morph into a 20deg C baby…
Wow, 16.5 is definitely too cold for me. I work remotely and sit a lot and I feel cold quickly. I definitely need 20 at least. Also, when it’s too cold during wet months, ypu have to be aware of mold.
There are many variables — individual preferences, efficiency of heating or cooling sources and ability to control them, how well a home is built, whether the people are energy conscious, whether the weather turns out to be freakish, etc.
What it comes down to is, THS already allows hosts to charge for utilities by mentioning them in their listings upfront. If a host is worried about such costs, they have no excuse for not disclosing and discussing at the outset. That allows potential sitters an informed choice.
By the time a sitter shows up, they shouldn’t be surprised by freezing or sweltering. Those are potentially grounds for a sitter to leave, because they’re supposed to get a habitable home as part of the THS trade.
We are in our late 60’s. My husband used to wear short sleeved t shirts when younger all year.
But now we both feel the chill more easily. On the other hand I have never ever taken my coat off outside until the temp peaked at 17/18 and I consider 16 degrees as outside temperature in Spring or Autumn. I can’t imagine living indoors at 16 degrees. On research it appears 18 degrees is the indoor temperature that is recommended in UK. That makes much more sense.
The funny thing is, it’s common even for couples to differ or bicker over the thermostat. Or for coworkers in offices to do that. There’s no one-size-fits-all, so it’s not reasonable for hosts to automatically assume that their preferred temp will suit sitters.
Yes you are right. But home owners should be more considerate of sitters comfort.
Setting at 18 degrees as standard all day then allowing sitter to turn it down if desired. We have had low 13- 14 degrees and less at sits since October. Its shocking.
Agreed that hosts should always be considerate of sitters’ comfort. To me, there’s no chance I’ll sit in freezing or sweltering conditions. Why not just stay home instead in comfort or pick hospitable hosts or do nonsit travel?
It’s worth noting that the hosts who are stingy / mean with heating and cooling are actually hurting other hosts, because as a result some sitters won’t pursue sits in certain locations during certain times of year. They’re shrinking the pool of willing sitters, which also could hurt them for future listings.