How Should I Set My Thermostat for When I’m At Work?

For many hours a day you’re off at work, or possibly at school. Yet your comfort system keeps working, with nobody home. This needs a lot of energy and feels like wasting money. You can dramatically scale back this cost by changing the thermostat up or down as you go to work and adjusting it back to your favored temperature when you return home. But how much should you adjust the temperature? 

Here’s what the Department of Energy has to say about thermostat changes: 

You can save as much as 10% a year on heating and cooling by simply setting your thermostat down 7°-10°F for eight hours a day rather than its usual setting. The percentage of savings from setback is greater for buildings in milder climates than for those in more severe climates. 

The lower the variation between the both temperatures, the less expensive your total cooling bill should be. You can effectively save energy during the winter by adjusting the thermostat to around 68°F while you’re awake and turning it down while you’re asleep or away from home. In the summer, you can use the same plan with central air conditioning by having your house warmer than normal when you are away and tweaking the thermostat to a setting as warm as is comfortable for you when you are at home and want cooling and to provide humidity control if required. 

You might have been informed that making these adjustments won’t be worth the time because your HVAC has to work harder to get back to your preferred temperature, undoing your savings, but the energy department dismisses that claim, especially for heaters: “A common misconception associated with thermostats is that a furnace works harder than normal to warm the space back to a comfortable temperature after the thermostat has been set back, resulting in little or no savings. In fact, as soon as your house drops below its normal temperature, it will lose energy to the surrounding environment more slowly.” 

Programmable and Smart Thermostats 

Despite the benefits of setting your thermostat each time you go to work, it’s not hard to overlook in the rush of getting ready and on your way. This is one perk of programmable and smart thermostats. You can set your thermostat to automatically change to another temperature during your typical work hours. And with a smart thermostat, you can increase or decrease the temperature (or the programming schedule) remotely. This is especially helpful if you’ve forgotten to adjust the setting before going on vacation. 

Don’t Forget the Pets 

If you have a pet, think about their comfort as well. Cats and dogs with thick fur won’t be comfortable with high temperatures. And pets with less fur might not be comfortable with cold temperatures. The same applies to tropical birds, fish and reptiles. Since temperature tolerances vary widely by breed and species, so review them for your pets. 

Other Advantages of Adjusting Your Thermostat for When You’re Away 

  • Carbon emissions – The harder you run your HVAC system, the more carbon emissions you generate. Preserving energy minimizes air pollution and greenhouse gasses. 
  • HVAC Longevity – Demanding too much from your HVAC system can cut its longevity and cause increased maintenance to be necessary. It also means the air filter may clog up faster, making your indoor air supply worse. 

If you have any ideas about your air conditioner settings, or if you are looking for HVAC repair or maintenance, get in touch with the specialists at Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing, a big company with homegrown heart. We’re passionate about making the world a comfy place to live. Whether we’re keeping things warm, cooling things down or making the water run, we take great pride in keeping our customers and communities cozy and satisfied. 

Experts — it’s in our name and core to our service. We work tirelessly to help each member of our staff develop into a skilled professional. We hire the best and supply education, opportunities and support, so everyone can learn, improve and be equipped for any kind of challenge in front of them. 

Our united business strength and people separate us from other service companies. With more than 4,000 team members on board, we can deliver and innovate better than the rest of the industry. Our can-do, family-friendly attitude fuels our collaboration and helps us get the job done on time, and right — the first time. 

Our combination of company size and unique expertise means we can offer more with the next amazing idea … which could come from anywhere and anyone. We are reinventing the industry by supporting each team member’s greatest ideas. That means our teams and customers can relax knowing we’re moving, innovating, delivering, and in it for the long term, through the busier times and beyond. 

We are Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing! Delivering strength, knowledge and support over every season. 

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