Clover's Cottage is a four-season vacation home, and as such, we have a number of different options for heating and cooling the home. Let's take a look at the hot and cold of it!
Heating
- The cottage is heated by zoned electric baseboard heat.
- A thermostat is located in each room (1st floor at rear of living area, each bedroom, sitting room, bathroom). Please adjust each thermostat to your desired temperature during your stay.
- In the full bathroom, there are two separate heat sources:
- Radiant floor heat, controlled by a thermostat by the door closest to the toilet.
- Wall heater (near the bathtub and shower), controlled by a thermostat located behind the bathroom door near the toilet.
- At CHECKOUT, set the bathroom heat and the first-floor heat to 55 degrees. All other thermostats should be turned off.
Cooling
- Two A/C window units are installed on the 2nd floor. Please adjust them to your desired comfort level.
- Two small room fans are also placed on the 2nd floor for your comfort.
- The first floor is naturally insulated by the 17"-thick fieldstone walls of the cottage, keeping it remarkably cool throughout the summer.
- Additionally, our little valley, surrounded by a pond, creek, and natural springs, tends to be cooler than all of the surrounding areas, so enjoy those cooler summer nights under the big, dark, starlit skies!
- When not at the cottage, and at CHECKOUT, turn off all fans and air conditioners.
General Air Conditioning Tips
- IMPORTANT NOTE: Air conditioners should never run constantly and are never intended/able to cool a room more than 20 degrees cooler than the outside ambient temperature. Constantly running an A/C unit will risk freezing and damaging the unit. For example, if the outside temperature is 100 degrees, the air-conditioner cannot likely cool the room below 80 degrees.
Dehumidifier(s) and Air Purifier
- Our cottage is a former flax mill, living in harmony with springs, a creek, and a pond. The water used to run THROUGH the mill! This close relationship with nature brings a certain softness to the air—a quiet reminder of the building’s long and storied life.
- To keep the atmosphere fresh and comfortable, we maintain a quiet, ongoing dialogue with the elements using discreet air purifiers and dehumidifiers. We ask guests to kindly keep these running during their stay, helping us preserve the charm of this historic space while ensuring it remains welcoming for all who visit.
- The dehumidifiers will make your stay most comfortable in times of high humidity.
- During the peak hot and humid months, the dehumidifier tank in the living room will need to be emptied daily. The water holding tank can be easily removed from the back of the unit. The dehumidifier in the mechanical room will empty automatically.
- Do not set the dehumidifier to the "continuous" setting.
- No adjustments should be required of the air purifier.
Fireplace
- Fireplace fires should be set to the far back of the firebox.
- Please visually verify that the damper is open before lighting a fire.
- Warm the chimney with some handheld burning paper before lighting the firewood. This helps create an effective draft in a cold chimney.
- ALWAYS use the fireplace screen.
- NEVER leave the room with the fire unattended.
- The smoke detector batteries CANNOT BE REMOVED. Silence the alarm by pressing the "silence" button. The batteries are permanently sealed. Attempts to remove them will require a replacement of the smoke detector.
Outdoor Campfire
Keeping warm by the campfire is another lovely feature of Clover's Cottage. Here are a few important tips.
- There is a bucket on the front porch for safe fire management. Keep it nearby (filled with water) for fire safety. Be certain the fire is fully extinguished before leaving the area.
- NEVER leave a campfire unattended.
FIREWOOD
- Complimentary starter firewood is on the front porch firewood cart.
- Additional firewood is available for purchase in the woodshed.
- A payment box can be found at the woodshed (or pay Tina Schmidt via Venmo @TinaKSchmidt).
- Occasionally, our woodshed is stocked with firewood ONLY intended to be used for outdoor fires. This firewood will be a separately marked stack that is either too large for indoors or pine that should never be burned inside. Please look carefully when selecting and purchasing your logs
Safe travels and keep cozy at the cottage!
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