Why is my house hottest during the night?
June 8th, 2010
I live in Southern California where it’s pretty hot during the summer. During the day, the house is warm, particularly because we have some areas with large windows; it’s the greenhouse effect in our own home. Yet everyone is in agreement; the house is hottest at night. It gets humid and really hot at night, even hotter than during the day. Why is this? I’m curious.
Thanks =)
Not in bed….the actual house. As in when sitting at the dinner table, getting a drink in the kitchen, working at my Mac…etc
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when you get into bed, you are not moving, which means that you are not working. if you are warm and working, you sweat. if you are warm and not working, you remain warm. plus, most people have blankets at night, so that adds to the heat.
It takes time for the heat to work it’s way through the walls. So while the peak temperature outside is usually around 3 PM, the peak inside can be a few hour later, or as much as 6 hours later, depending on the thickness and composition of the walls.
I have brick walls, and I get a temperature peak about 5-7 PM.
The converse of that is the house will stay cool in the morning as it heats up inside.
Did you ever notice how cool it is in caves and basements? same effect, but exaggerated due to the thickness of the ground, acting as insulation. Go deep into a large cave, and the temperature stays at the same point day and night, winter and summer.
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When the sun sets wind dies down, you have less circulating air, you notice this by feeling warmer.