One of the items heat transfer is dependent upon is the speed of the fluid flow of the heat sink. More flow, more heat transfer.

You are the heat source at 94F or so external temperature. Since your home is cooler, it is the heat sink. A fan increases the airflow speed, thereby increasing the heat transfer rate.

Physics says it does cool you down.

I dont find these garages all very hot like you all say..........I am from AZ and some people put in insulation on the garage door and thats maybe it its no big deal and it gets way hotter there than here !!!!!

No i would not leave door open doesnt do much either plus critters come in......

coming from ARIZONA LOL this is NOT extreme heat

I agree that a ceiling fan will cool your body, but my point was that it doesn't cool the room or reduce the humidity. But, I still do not like ceiling fans and I don't use them. I guess it is a personal preference.

Exactly.

We are in the middle of the ocean. In the tropics. Gonna be hot.

But what about hurricanes & wind-driven water? Better ask your insurance company before increasing soffitt vents in TV due to increased damage risk. Soffit vents are a frequent point of wind-driven water intrusion causing extensive water damage from hurricanes. Wind-driven water is one of the main threats to TV from hurricanes, besides potential tornadoes spawned.

Code violation? How can the gestapo prove WHEN you put your ladder down, why you did it, or how long they it had been down? Has there EVER been a fire which has spread more quickly due to attic stairs being left open? While this is theoretically a problem, in reality this just seems like fear-mongering.

Leaving your attic open will definitely increase the possibility of insects moving in. They don't seem to die off in high heat either—creating a whole new problem.

Reverse snowbird? Is that called being a sunbird?

You might be right? But, the "snow birds" fly from the snow toward the sun. So, what are the "sunbirds" trying to get away from? 🤔🤔🤔

The fire code writers recognize that house fires are more likely to start in the garage. If the garage fills up with smoke, and there is no separation between the garage and the attic, the attic will quickly fill up with smoke and the smoke can permeate the entire house. Leaving the attic stairs open for an extended time period ignores and defeats the intention of the code. Obviously, the code is not perfect, but if someone dies in your house from smoke inhalation, it won't give you much satisfaction to know that you successfully violated the fire code. I would call it common sense, not fear-mongering.

There are many in TV and throughout FL. Florida residents that fly north for the summer.

Well said

Yeah, you don't shovel humidity... you just die in it. If you can afford to live in The Villages, you surely could have afforded a snow removal company.

Wisconsin is 75 degrees, sunny and no humidity today. Can't beat that! It's always amusing to read posts trying to reassure themselves why they live full time in Florida.

Things have changed a lot in 54 years. University students don't suffer for much anymore. Some parents even provide hired housekeeping services for their "kiddies".

Summer afternoons are a great time of year in The Villages - actually forces me to stay home for a few hours and gives me a break from all my outdoor activities. Summer afternoons are a good time to work on genealogy, a jigsaw puzzle, catch up on classic movies, have friends over for cards or board games, or take a nap. If I want to get out, there is bowling, matinees at the theater, or attend a plethora of clubs at the rec centers.

That's called a mental placebo, right?:clap2:

I have my thermostat set on 80. I’ve adjusted to this cooling. Occasionally I also turn on the fan above the bed.
My bill is around $100/mo for an all electric 1200 sf house.

Yes. And what do we call them? "Snow birds?" Do they have a name/term?

Enjoy Wisconsin. I will enjoy Florida. We RV'd for many years and always missed out on summer here. Heck, we put in a pool when we bought the place and never got to use it. Finally, sold the RV and we are really getting to enjoy the pool, finally. Different strokes for ---- you know.

Even better when one can enjoy both!

Weather in The Villages January 2024...

Saturday Jan. 26: 75 and sunny.
Tuesday Jan. 9: 77 and partly cloudy.
Wednesday Jan. 24: 79 and partly cloudy.
Thursday Jan. 25: 81 and sunny.
Friday Jan. 26: 82 and partly cloudy.
Saturday Jan. 27: 81 and sunny.

Care to share what the temps were back in Jan. in your particular neck of the Wisconsin woods?

I can tell you at the lake house, in MI we were in the 40s sometimes 50s, and not enough snow base to ski. Little depressing to travel north for snow, and zip. Not everyone craves hot and humidity, some of us keep northern climate homes to enjoy changing of seasons.

I do find my parents entering in their 80s still fire up the snow plow, enjoying the weather. I think the only way I am getting them in warm weather this coming winter is if their house burns down.

Kids not a fan of FL, either middle loves to ski, and skate. Oldest MN just moved to SC, and still hoping for change of seasons. Youngest in Louisville still playing hockey, and loves when that 1” of snow shutters everything

Isn't ut about time this south vs north stopped. If you want to live in Florida then fine, if you want to spend time in the North then fine, but for goodness sake lets stop this bickering about which is best.

To each their own and let's all enjoy our personal choice.

We have 3 mini-splits, one in garage, 2 in lanai, and one of our golf carts has AC. That’s how we deal with it, lol. We only go out after sundown if we’re going to spend time outdoors, unless we’re going to the pool. In the later summer months we don’t even go to the pool as the water gets ridiculously hot and unpleasant. There’s plenty of activities we can do at home or in air conditioned rec centers. :)

I'm from NC and there were many days where it was hotter in NC than here.

We have two windows in our garage and stuck a circulating fan in one to just keep the garage air circulating.

Those of you with the pools...when you inviting me over? They dont allow late night skinny dipping in the rec center pools and that to me is the biggest reason to have your own pool..

#sojealous

What type of base thermostat do you have? Did you have to get a special one to work with these? Thank you?

I love conserving things whenever I can. My Dad & Mom were very frugal & (gratefully) they instilled it in me. I’ve been considering your question carefully. There are a lot of little things I change during the heat of summer. So, here’s some things which can really make a difference with little or no cost: 1) do (inside) laundry & run dishwasher after sunset or before sunrise. Dishwasher will be best set to “air dry” then crack the door after its done to allow air drying to finish. Definitely tumble dry clothes at night & clean lint trap often. 2) set thermostat a few degrees higher in the late afternoon & cooler just before bedtime. 3) use evaporative cooling on your skin 4) drink icy drinks to lower your body temp 5) go out to shop, eat or see a movie in the heat of the afternoon 6) get a cooling blanket for your chair/bed—it really works. Got mine @Costco for $16 delivered. 7) position a fan wherever you sit during the day. Turn it on you but only when you are needing to cool quickly. 8) cool your food. Hot spicy foods can heat up your perception. 9) shower before bed. Wet or damp hair cools your head—heat center. 10) dont pull a hot engine car or cart into the garage until its cooled down. 11) stay hydrated. That makes everything seem better. 12) ice your pulse points (under arms, front sides of neck, even your feet. 13) moving air feels cooler so fans can help you feel cooler even at more elevated temps. I have two in my bedroom & sleep like a baby even at 74-75. 14) change your HVAC filter more often for better efficiency. 15) get dryer vent cleaned 16) clean fridge coils.
Hope this helps give you some ideas. I would not leave garage door cracked nor would I leave attic ladder down. Too many creepy crawlies & flying nuisances.

I, too, try to maximize whatever situation I’m in. Having to avoid being outdoors sometimes comes naturally for me so I literally keep lists on my iphone: what to do when… (it’s stinking hot, or its too cold (below 50 degrees for me) or its too late, its early AM, when I feel lonely, Favorite Things to eat at home, Places Id like to go, or things to do on Sunday to rest & observe.)

Sad fact: I am literally allergic to cold yet i lived in the Northern freezer all of my life. While Floridian heat solves almost all of my encounters, believe it or not, still not all of them. Icy a/c and frozen or icy drinks, even ice cream can be literally be life-threatening for me. I am one of the 1/2-1% odd-ball outcasts so I have to do the best with what I’ve got. Many others have much worse problems so Ive learned to accept my own limitations & make the best of it. Believe me, it does not slow me down that much. Ive had to shift to thoughts of what can I do right now rather than I can’t do this I cant do that.

Ok that makes sense but it seems like you meant to say it’s not safe to leave your attic ladder open (for the very clear reasons you stated) rather than it’s a Code enforcement threat. My point being safety is a great reason to do what’s right without need for any laws enforcement. Thank you for your description of the serious hazard posed by smoke from attic openings in a garage fire. Good info indeed! 😊

I was in Cincinnati during my university days, in the early '70s. Cincinnati got plenty hot and humid in the summer time. The air was none to clean either. The best way to beat the heat was 25 cents, or it might have been 30 cents, my memory is fuzzy, for a quart of Hudepohl, Wiedemann's, or Schoenling's "Big King"...ah for the days I could drink as much of that as I could afford and not get fat.

As a Florida resident who knows many other Florida residents… nobody goes north for the summers. Yes, we own places in the mountains of GA/NC etc. but never spend more than 2 weeks at one time there.

I know a few (or knew, some passed) who have Florida residence but travel "back home" for the summers. Essentially snowbirds who make sure they are in the right place for enough days to qualify to file in the state with the more desirable income taxes.

Excellent points, and post. People react to heat (and cold, too) in various ways. Just because hot and humid might suit one person doesn't mean it suits all of them.

???
I must be one of those nobodies. 4 months/year in The Finger Lakes of NY.

4 months????? So in other words, you go there for the last 6 weeks of winter, catch the 10 days of spring, 5 days of summer from June 29th to July 4, 10 days of autumn and finally the first 6 weeks of winter, then return to Florida. Lived that for 30 years.

You got it! People ask me if I "miss the changing of the seasons". No, I get it all in 4 months. It will soon be Spring here.

We head out mid May to northern house, until July, then travel farther north to lake house. Watch the colors turn, then slowly travel south to KY, over to NC, SC down the coast arrive back to TV sometime in November. Half our neighbors head north so you are not alone

Do not leave the garage door open. The garages do not have any insulation in the walls from what I can tell. The inside of the garage is like a sauna. Feels like 110 degrees. Never had this garage extreme heat in any other Florida house. Must be the Villages construction practices.

Which is the fault of the builder which by extension is the fault of the evil, greedy developer? Right? But there is a solution to that problem.........

The walls around the garage do not have insulation because insulating an unconditioned space does nothing to cool the space. This is standard practice in the construction industry, not just Florida or The Villages. The purpose of insulation is to slow down heat transfer between a conditioned space and an unconditioned space.