Did you know that your body temperature during sleep plays a significant role in the overall quality of your nighttime slumber? Here’s how your HVAC system is linked to your sleep cycle and how you can get better quality sleep with ductless AC.
How Temperature Affects Sleep
The same part of the brain that controls your sleep and wake cycles also controls thermoregulation, or your body’s ability to heat and cool itself. How warm or cool you are affects how easily you are able to fall asleep and how long you spend in each stage of sleep, particularly REM sleep where memory sorting and dreaming occur.
Current data indicates that a higher core body temperature is associated with more wakefulness or restlessness at night. Have you ever been hot or sweaty at night and found yourself tossing and turning? It’s likely your thermoregulation was off, and blankets certainly don’t help.
As your internal body temperature cools, the pineal gland in your brain secretes melatonin, which is the hormone that induces sleep. Your temperature will continue to drop slowly as more melatonin is released, until your body reaches its lowest nighttime temperature roughly two hours after you fall asleep. This lower temp also helps you conserve energy during the night.
If you are too warm, you will likely have a more difficult time falling asleep since your pineal gland will not be able to release as much melatonin. You’ll can also experience disruptions in your REM sleep cycle, which can cause irritability, anxiety, confusion, and loss of short-term memory.
Generally, if your bedroom is below 65 degrees Fahrenheit, you will likely be too chilled to sleep well. You may shiver or your nose may feel cold outside the blankets. If your bedroom is over 75 degrees Fahrenheit, you may sweat and wake frequently throughout the night. For many people, this happens even at 70 degrees.
How Ductless AC Controls Temperature
Ductless HVAC units function as a heat pump that works for both heating and cooling, removing or reducing the need for additional heating in the winter. Unlike a furnace or a window air conditioner, a ductless condenser doesn’t heat or cool the air that comes into your home. Instead, it simply moves existing heat from one place to the other.
Instead of generating heat or removing it, ductless HVAC removes heat from the outdoors during winter to heat your home and reverses the process during the summer.
How to Get a Good Night’s Sleep With Ductless Air Conditioning
Ductless HVAC is a great way to get energy-efficient cooling power with individual temperature control for each unit. According to The Sleep Foundation, the ideal temperature for sleeping is about 65 degrees Faherenheit, but this may vary by one or two degrees between people.
Most doctors recommend that their patients sleep with the thermostat set between 60 and 67 degrees depending on personal comfort. Temperature was one of the most important considerations for quality sleep according to study respondents, with four out of five people rating temperature as a critical sleep factor.
Certain ductless models have programmable thermostats, which allow you to set your air handlers to automatically lower the temperature at night. This way, you don’t have to adjust the thermostat manually every night and again in the morning to set it back to normal.
Programming your units to run cooler at night and warmer during the day also helps you to save more energy than if you maintained a consistent temperature day and night. If you work away from home, you can raise your thermostat even more during the day to decrease heating and cooling costs. Program your thermostat to reach the desired temperature about an hour before you come home, and you’ll never know the difference – but your wallet will.
How N.E.T.R., Inc. Can Help
N.E.T.R., Inc. is a Mitsubishi Elite Diamond Contractor and has been providing the greater Boston area with reliable heating and cooling since 1986. Our experienced technicians are expertly trained to offer top-tier service, whether we’re installing a new HVAC system or just tuning up your existing one.
To learn more about the benefits of ductless HVAC or to have a contractor come to your home to get a quote, contact our office by calling (781) 933-6387.
