As temperatures continue to dip below zero and snow continues to fall, energy usage rises at Syracuse University.

The weather has caused an increased amount of energy required to maintain comfortable temperatures inside all the academic and residential buildings across campus. Bitter cold temperatures felt this winter have specifically increased utilities used for heating such as steam, natural gas and in some cases electricity, said Nathan Prior, associate director of climate operations in SU’s department of energy systems & sustainability management.

“While the temperatures as of late winter have been bitterly cold, overall, this winter is on track to be slightly warmer than last year based on heating degree days and energy usage for this fiscal year which is projected to be less than last year,” Prior said.

Temperatures dipped below minus 10 degrees on Monday, when a wind chill warning was in effect for south central New York.

SU organizes different departments across campus to monitor the weather when it gets this frigid, and they discuss the necessary course of action. Last Thursday, a decision was made to keep campus buildings functioning 24/7 for an entire week. The choice was made to ensure that buildings were warm enough when students, faculty and staff arrived to class in the morning, and to prevent potential freezing of pipes and other equipment, Prior said.

The temperature in academic and residential buildings is regulated differently. However, all buildings are controlled by automated systems that monitor and control inside temperatures.

Nonresidential buildings maintain a temperature of 68 degrees Fahrenheit while occupied and 60 degrees while unoccupied. However, when it’s extremely cold outside, like recently, the buildings all lock into occupied temperatures to ensure warmth, said Tim Sweet, director of SU Energy Systems and Sustainability Management.

Sweet said that some areas of campus, like the Steam Station, take other precautions; they may keep an extra boiler on standby to ensure a quicker response in case of equipment failure.

“Typically, we maintain the buildings at a slightly lower unoccupied temperature during off-hours, but in extreme events such as this it actually takes more energy to warm a building up after being unoccupied than it does to maintain an occupied temperature,” said Prior.

These appropriate thermostat measures are taken to always ensure a safe and warm environment for everyone on campus, as well as proper building infrastructure maintenance.

“As the university does an excellent job managing its energy supply-side through contracts with its suppliers, I would not say that the university loses money during times of bitter cold,” Prior said.

Published on February 19, 2015 at 12:01 am

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