Recommended Thermostat Settings for your Home
The precise control that a thermostat offers can be both a good and a bad thing. If you choose optimized settings, then your system will operate efficiently and help save you money. With inefficient settings, though, your energy bills will be high and you’ll put extra wear and tear on your equipment.
Understanding how each thermostat setting affects your comfort before adjusting it to your desired temperature is important. This way, you can select settings that provide a good balance between comfort and energy efficiency. Here’s a basic guide from JAMCO Heating & Air Conditioning on the most important thermostat settings.
‘On’ Versus ‘Auto’
One setting you can adjust is whether to have your fan in “on” mode or “auto” mode. When the fan is in “on” mode, it constantly runs and conditions the air if “cool” or “heat” is selected. Thus, no matter how cold or hot it gets, your system will keep running 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
As you can imagine, this setting uses quite a lot of energy. If you need to circulate air throughout your home, though, this is the way to do it.
The “auto” setting, on the other hand, is the best setting to use most of the time. This setting allows your HVAC system to turn off and on based on the temperature you select. This means that your system won’t be running full-time, which allows for significant energy savings. You can choose when your programmable thermostat adjusts the temperature, which helps you save energy.
‘Heat’ and ‘Cool’
The “heat” and “cool” settings on your thermostat are fairly self-explanatory. If your home is too warm, then you use the “cool” setting. If your home is too cool, then you use the “heat” setting. What you may not be aware of, though, is that you can turn both of these settings off and still run your system.
With your system in “on” mode and the furnace and air conditioner turned off, your system can circulate room temperature air around your home to freshen-up stale spaces. Using this setting, your HVAC system essentially functions as a ceiling fan that works in all your rooms simultaneously.
‘Home’ Versus ‘Away’
Smart thermostats have a variety of settings that allow you to operate your system with maximum efficiency. One such setting that your thermostat can select is detecting whether you are home or away. Under these top-level settings, you can program a host of other settings that your system puts in place when it detects your location.
This feature allows you to essentially have two separate HVAC systems in one. One setting will have specific settings for when you are at home. The other setting will have different settings for when you are away. Since everything occurs automatically, you can save energy without even thinking about it.
Temperature
Perhaps the most important setting you can control on your thermostat is the temperature. Your temperature settings ultimately determine how often your HVAC system runs, and this affects how much energy you will save. Simply adjusting your thermostat by one or two degrees can lead to noticeable differences in your monthly utility costs.
During the winter, it’s good to try and keep your thermostat set at around 68 degrees or less. During the summer, try and keep your thermostat set at 75 degrees or higher. If those settings don’t keep you comfortable, try adjusting the temperature one degree at a time until you find a temperature that suits you and your family. When you’re away, you can set the thermostat much higher or lower, keeping in mind pets, pipes, plants, and other temperature-sensitive items around your home.
Help With Efficiency
Understanding the settings on your thermostat is ultimately about maximizing the efficiency of your HVAC system. At JAMCO Heating & Air Conditioning, we can help make your HVAC system more efficient in other ways, as well.
We can perform repairs and tune-ups on your air conditioner and furnace so that they run well and don’t break down when you need them the most. If you need to have your HVAC system replaced, we can install a brand-new system. We aim to be your go-to solution when you need to restore comfort to your home or business.
To maintain your trust, we employ only NATE-certified technicians. You can look through our numerous five-star reviews to see for yourself the satisfaction that we bring to our customers. If you want to increase the efficiency of your HVAC system, be sure to give us a call at JAMCO Heating & Air Conditioning in Deptford, NJ, today.
Related Blogs:
Blog: How to Reduce Your Heating Bills in Winter
Blog: What Makes Smart Thermostats Cost Effective?
Blog: Your Guide to Buying a New Furnace
