This, but in an hour.

It’s a special time of year, that liminal time between summer and autumn, that time when one day is blustery and cold, the next rainy, and the third hot and sunny and wonderful. It’s also that time when building heating systems get schizophrenic.

Housing’s annual email addressing this, this year sent October 3rd, is after the jump. It pretty much amounts to, “Sorry I’m not sorry.”

Matt Chupack, CC ’15 and Carman 10 resident, brings us this harrowing account.

This morning when I got in the shower around 9:40 am, my room was nice and cold. By 10:45 it was strangely warm. I checked the air conditioning, which was set to “cooler” and got confused…and then I realized that the air conditioning was now actually a heater!!!

Happens to the best of us, Matt. We’ve gotten reports that Fayerweather hasn’t been home to fair weather lately either: they’ve turned off the AC in the building, so enjoy the sauna.

Which buildings are the worst, folks?

Dear Residents,

We are approaching the middle of Fall, and as the outside temperatures are beginning to cool off, each of the residence halls will be undergoing a seasonal conversion. All heating systems will be engaged, and the cooling systems will be turned off in the buildings where cooling systems exist. The conversion process may take up to three weeks to complete for the entire campus.

Throughout the month of October and often into November, New York City weather fluctuates substantially. These periods are often referred to as shoulder seasons. Temperature fluctuations of 30°F or greater within a 24-hour period are common. Therefore, until the season changes fully and the colder temperatures settle in, many campus buildings will likely be warmer or cooler than desired.

Unfortunately, there is not much that can be done about this possible discomfort until the systems are fully engaged and the outside temperatures remain more consistent.

For information about how heat regulations work in your particular building, please visit Common Maintenance Requests in the Guide to Living.

Thank you in advance for your patience while each of the residence halls undergoes this seasonal conversion.

Regards,
Columbia Housing

Changes via Wikimedia Commons