The days of the classic Honeywell mercury-filled dial thermostat are over. While many long-time homeowners may feel the urge to cling to the simplicity of the thermostat’s iconic design, it’s a costly decision. Fortunately, digital programmable thermostats have come a long way, making it easy to stay comfortable. It’s time to make the most of your home heating and cooling systems by upgrading your thermostat.
Energy Savings
Programmable thermostats are designed with your busy family’s lifestyle in mind. These modern devices signal your residential HVAC systems to run only as needed. Obviously, there’s no need to run your air conditioning during the hottest afternoon hours or for your furnace to pump out heat while you’re taking advantage of your cozy office. To get the most out of your thermostat and enjoy the greatest energy savings, be sure to set your thermostat to take a break for at least eight hours each day. The experts at energy.gov have found that you can save up to 10% on heating and cooling by setting your thermostat back 7°-10°F for eight hours per day. During the winter months, ramp up your savings even more by setting your thermostat to 68°F (or lower) while you’re awake and even lower while you’re asleep or away from home. In the summer, set your central air conditioning to 78°F (or higher) while you’re home and as high as possible (while still ensuring humidity control and pet safety) while you’re away.
Reduce Wear and Tear on Your Home Heating and Cooling Units
Save money on home HVAC repair by installing a new thermostat. It stands to reason that if your air conditioning unit or furnace runs less, it’ll last longer. By programming your thermostat to take a break during peak daytime hours, you’ll dramatically reduce the wear and tear on your HVAC units.
Optimal Comfort
Saving money on your monthly utility bills and reducing residential HVAC repairs are pretty compelling arguments for investing in a new thermostat. Consider this, though: not only will your wallet enjoy the benefits of a new thermostat, but you and your family will as well. Programming your thermostat to bring your home’s temperature to comfortable levels just prior to your return from work or from school is not only an economically sound decision, but it’s convenient, too. Budget-minded homeowners can further increase savings by adjusting temperatures during the evening hours as well while still waking up to a comfortably cool or cozy warm house in the morning — making getting out of bed a little bit easier. A programmable thermostat allows you to get the maximum comfort and performance from your home heating and cooling systems.
Remote Access
Modern, wi-fi enabled thermostats are marvels of technology. If the weather does something a little unexpected (which, these days, is kind of expected), then you can access your thermostat remotely to accommodate for Mother Nature’s mood swings. Or, if you forgot to program your thermostat to take your extended vacation into account, you’ll be able to change temperature settings from your smartphone or tablet. And if life throws you an expected curveball, you can temporarily override your thermostat’s settings to take that sick day or holiday into consideration.
Ease of Use
One of the biggest criticisms of early programmable thermostats was that the devices were difficult to program, hard-to-read, and inflexible. In other words, a minor change in schedule due to Daylight Savings, vacation, or sick days resulted in 10 minutes of frustrated button-pushing. Today’s digital thermostats are much easier to program and the super high-tech and customizable digital versions, like the Nest, learn your habits, temperature preferences, and schedule, making time-consuming programming entirely unnecessary.
Get the Most out of Zoned Climate Control
If you have several different climate zones within your home, programmable thermostats ensure maximum savings. With a programmable thermostat in each zone, you know you’re getting the most out of your zoned HVAC while reducing your overall energy consumption. The Ecobee is a digital thermostat that uses room sensors to deliver your preferred temperature to each one, eliminating the need for multiple thermostats.
If you’re ready to reduce energy consumption, save on costly home heating and cooling repairs, and achieve maximum comfort, contact Parthenon Plumbing today. We’ll help you find and install the digital programmable thermostat that’s right for you and your family.
