How to Use a Programmable Thermostat for the Most Energy Savings

Setting your thermostat back when members of your household are sleeping or away from home is a proven energy saver, and using a programmable thermostat helps make that habit effortless on your part. While programmable thermostats are simple to use and install, there are some tricks to getting the most out of them. Here’s how to use one in your Wilmington-area home.

Choose the programmable thermostat with the right flexibility for your needs. How about a thermostat that supports different schedules for weekdays and weekends, or would a different schedules for weekdays plus one for Saturday and a different one for Sunday work best for your family’s needs? There’s also an option offering a different schedule for every day of the week.

Program the thermostat with settings that accurately reflect your household life. When do you wake up? When do you usually leave for work or school? When do household members arrive back home, and when does the entire household go to sleep?

Avoid reprogramming the thermostat for short-term schedule changes. If you have a long weekend when the family will be home or a vacation when everyone will be away, use override settings. That will help keep the thermostat correctly programmed when your schedule normalizes again.

Turn the temperature back by 10 to 15 degrees when you’re sleeping or away from home. Keeping your home temperature at a reasonable but conservative level when you’re home can also help shave dollars off your energy bill.

Consider what level of smart thermostat is right for you. Some thermostats come with advanced features, such as WiFi connectivity to allow you to check on your home from any Internet connection, or motion detection that can automatically shift your home into vacation mode. Read up on your options and decide what, if any, would be useful for your home before you buy.

At Sobieski Services, Inc., our goal is to help our customers in Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland and New Jersey learn more about energy and home comfort issues – especially HVAC and plumbing issues – so that they can save money and live in healthier, more comfortable homes.

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