Yale Daily News

Editor’s Note: After this article’s publication, Yale Facilities shared the following with the News:

Samuel Olmstead, Acting Director of Facilities wrote that the colleges are “now heated” with hot water generated from steam in the main mechanical room of each college, and the steam is on and available at every college. Hee added that the hot water systems are enabled based on outdoor air temperature which is automatic, and once they are turned on, students can adjust the heat using the valve on the radiators. 

“Even though the heat comes on automatically, having sat dormant for the summer, there can be issues that prevent the system from working correctly,” Olmstead wrote in an email to the News. “We typically receive some ‘no heat’ calls as the systems come on and respond as quickly as possible.”

Olmstead added that students should call 2-6888 whenever they have heat or other facilities-related issues. If that line is too busy, other companies who also offer services like furnace repair service can be contacted instead.

“With the weather turning cool again tonight, we have extra staff scheduled to work tomorrow in anticipation of these calls,” Olmstead wrote to the News. “We will dispatch someone to investigate and repair the situation.”

Dean of Yale College Pericles Lewis also wrote to the News and also said that heat is now on in all buildings.

As temperatures dip and heating systems resume operation after summer dormancy, guaranteeing the dependability of your boiler is paramount. Instead of solely relying on reactive measures, students can take proactive steps to prevent unforeseen heating problems by considering the installation of a trustworthy boiler system, like a Potterton combi boiler. Investing in a quality boiler not only ensures consistent warmth but also reduces the chances of disruptions to academic pursuits due to heating malfunctions. If you also need a heat pump repair seattle wa service, you may call in hvac technicians from a company like Gene Johnson Plumbing & Heating.

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Read the original story here:

A particularly chilly start to October has many students wondering about heating in the College’s residential buildings.

As temperatures earlier this week dipped into the low 50s, with Monday’s highest temperature recorded as 55 degrees, students living in Pierson, Jonathan Edwards and Silliman Colleges as well as McClellan Hall on Old Campus reported a lack of heat. Several said that they have reached out to administrators with little action taking place. 

Carly Benson ’24, who was annexed to McClellan Hall from Berkeley College, wrote to the News that no one on her floor has heat. Benson added that a student on her floor called facilities, who told them they would not get heat turned on until Oct. 15 because the “power plant needs to reroute.”

“It’s kind of hard to focus or do anything because of that,” Benson wrote to the News. “Everyone in McClellan is irritated because we were already sad about being annexed and now we are sad and cold. You would think with the price of tuition we would be getting heat.” 

“Yale isn’t very good at being a landlord,” she added.

The University was unavailable for comment at time of publication.

Sein Lee ’24, who lives in Silliman College, said she has recently faced temperatures as low as 55 degrees due to a lack of heating. Lee filed a work order that was later terminated; She and two other students reported being told that heat in their buildings would not be turned on until Oct. 15.

Upon calling facilities about her situation, Lee was told to try buying warmer clothes.

State law requires that residential buildings be heated to at least 65 degrees. Colder temperatures, it states, are “injurious to the health of the occupants.”

Lee described her situation as outrageous, noting that portable space heaters are prohibited in living spaces at Yale, except when issued in emergency situations.

Zaharaa Altwaij ’25, who lives in the basement of Silliman and said her bed is adjacent to a window, wrote to the News that she has fixed a blanket between her window and screen as temporary insulation. 

“My roommate and I have been waking up several mornings feeling congested which sets a bad mood for the rest of the day,” Altwaij wrote to the News. “I have been doing all of my homework under my covers because everywhere else in the suite is even colder.” 

The University’s four power plants generate and distribute heating, chilled water for air conditioning and electric power.