Each year as summer turns to fall, the university’s Customer Service Center receives an increase in calls reporting building temperatures being too cold. Campus heating and cooling systems are currently still in cooling mode and will not be switched to heating mode until day temperatures are expected to remain consistently below 70 degrees. October and November typically have cooler night temperatures but still require cooling later in the day.
Campus systems do not operate the same as residential HVAC systems. They can only produce warm air or cool air. Once a system has been switched over to heating mode, the facilities staff can only switch it back to cooling if temperatures rise above 70 degrees for more than two days. This is because it takes several hours to make the switch back to cooling without causing damage to the unit. When outside temperatures begin to approach freezing, they will dump the chillers to avoid freeze breaks and at that point they can no longer switch back and forth. They apologize in advance for the inconvenience.
Please direct any questions or concerns to the Customer Service Center at 216.368.2580 or customerservice@case.edu.