Best Recommended Thermostat Settings For All Seasons

Save money & achieve optimal comfort

If your home has central air or heating (or both) you’ve got a thermostat. But are you using that thermostat properly?

You may be surprised to learn that the answer is actually probably no. In fact, it was discovered through a study conducted by the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab that nine out of ten Americans rarely program their thermostat or have never even attempted to program their thermostat due to a lack of knowledge about how to do so. However, properly programming your thermostat can add up to big savings on your home’s energy costs – we’re talking about a savings of about 10% or more.

So wouldn’t you want to know the ins and outs of your thermostat so that your home is comfortable no matter the season and so that you can start saving money?

The Most Efficient Thermostat Settings

For you to start managing your home’s temperature and start saving money, we recommend following guidance from the U.S. Department of Energy.

• During the winter season, they recommend keeping your thermostat at 68° Fahrenheit and lowering that by 10° when no one is home and when you’re sleeping.
• In the summer, the U.S. Department of Energy recommends turning off your AC completely when you’re not home. Otherwise, the recommendation is to keep your thermostat at 78° Fahrenheit.

If you’ve got a programmable thermostat, you have the ability to set a timer for temperature changes. If this is the case:

• Set your thermostat to shut off 20-30 minutes before you leave the house and for it to turn back on 20-30 minutes before your return.
• Depending on if you’re using heat or air-conditioning, set your thermostat to either increase or decrease in temperature about 60 minutes before you go to bed. Set it to the temperatures recommended above (68 ° in the winter and 78° in the summer) about 30 minutes before your alarm is set to go off.

Considering the world we live in today, there are of course smart (wi-fi) thermostats. With this technology, you are able to control your home’s thermostat remotely from your phone or iPad. Some of these smart devices can also set a humidity level, track how much energy you’re using and tell you how long it takes your home to reach your ideal temperature.

If your New Jersey home needs a thermostat installation, the professionals at JW Pierson can help. Contact us today!