If there’s one thing which most people argue about, it’s whether the room they’re in is too hot, too cold, or just right!
We’re all different and that means what one person finds too hot will be someone else’s idea of just perfect.When it comes to ensuring the comfort of your receptionist and visitors to your commercial reception space, you need to make sure that the temperature you set, is one which everyone can agree on.
The HSE states that no workplace should ever be below 16 degrees celsius. That’s the minimum it should ever be. However, for some people 16 degrees is positively baltic! As long as your reception area is above that temperature, you can use your judgement on how many degrees above it you go. However, be aware that anything too hot and you’re going to end up with visitors complaining about sweating and feeling half asleep.
During the coldest months of the year you can think about heating in your reception area but do remember that proper ventilation is important. You can never underestimate the power of fresh air, but when that ar is very cold, what can you do to ensure the space isn’t equally as cold?
Air conditioning is an option for many reception areas. You can set the machine to be cold for the summer months and warm for the winter months but within that you have another set of problems. Air conditioning often dries the air out and can cause dry eyes, dry throat, and not everyone enjoys sitting in a space that features this type of heating/cooling.
As you can see, it’s very difficult to win on this subject!
The best advice? Ask your receptionist.
They’re the one who sits in the reception area day in, day out and they’re the one who understands what it’s like to be there and how comfortable or not it is. Take their advice and you’ll be able to create a space that’s not too hot, not too cold, and positively just right!
Of course, some buildings simply don’t need extra heating during the winter months because they run quite warm naturally, whilst others run cold. You also need to take into account how old the building is and whether there are any draughts getting in. Seal those up, make sure your windows are sealed and double glazed, and you should be able to keep your heating/cooling bills down in the process.