This question comes up more than you’d think, usually after a tenant insists the building should be colder, or a property manager wants something firmer than a gut feeling to point to. What temperature should a commercial building be set at in summer? ASHRAE’s general guidance lands most commercial spaces between 23 and 26 degrees Celsius in summer, but the right number for your building depends on tenant mix, sun exposure, and how your zones are split.

Why there isn’t one universal number

A retail space near St. Catharines with full storefront glass behaves nothing like an interior office in a Hamilton warehouse conversion. The same setpoint that feels comfortable in one space can feel stuffy or overcooled in the other. That’s part of why our St. Catharines commercial HVAC clients often need a different zoning approach than a downtown Hamilton office tower.

Other factors that change the right setpoint for a given zone:

• How much direct sun a zone gets in the afternoon
• Whether the space has equipment, kitchens, or server rooms adding extra heat
• Occupancy density. A packed conference room needs more cooling than an empty hallway
• Humidity. A space can feel warmer than the thermostat suggests if humidity is high

How a BAS keeps setpoints consistent without babysitting them

Once you’ve settled on reasonable targets, the harder part is making sure every zone actually holds them through a full season. A building automation system applies setpoints automatically by zone and time of day, so you’re not relying on someone remembering to adjust a wall thermostat every time the weather shifts.

This also protects you from the opposite problem: an individual tenant locking their thermostat at an extreme setting that drags down comfort, or efficiency, for everyone sharing that rooftop unit.

What we recommend as a starting point

1. 22 to 24 degrees Celsius for general office space during occupied hours
2. 24 to 26 degrees Celsius for warehouse, light industrial, or low-occupancy zones
3. A setback of 2 to 3 degrees during unoccupied overnight hours, not a full shutdown
4. Documented setpoints in your BAS so any technician, including ours, can see exactly what’s been configured and why

Get a setpoint review from Alpine HVAC

If you’re fielding setpoint arguments with tenants or just want a second opinion on what your building should actually be running at, our team can review your current configuration against your building’s real conditions. Reach out through our contact page and we’ll walk through it together.