It’s a constant battle: comfort vs cost. Whether it’s summer heat or winter chills, we frequently answer questions about how to balance comfort in your Dayton home with the cost of operating your furnace and air conditioning system.
Thermostat Settings For Comfort And Savings
Here are some tips to help you keep your thermostat in balance.
Cooler Month Thermostat Settings
During the winter months, you can leave the thermostat at 68 degrees. That is if you will be at home. Say you are home for 8 hours at a time during the day in the winter. Turn the settings down about 10-15 degrees. By doing it this way, you will shave another 5-15 percent off of your bill.
Can you imagine the savings you will have, just based on these two practices alone? If your family tends to get cold, just use warm blankets. Keep the thermostat on low each night and pile up on blankets. This will help circulate the body. Plus, it’s going to keep your energy levels down in a big way.
Warmer Month Thermostat Settings
During the summer, we commonly recommend clients keep their thermostat around 78 degrees Fahrenheit. This setting allows your air conditioner to do its most important job: control humidity. Fact is, humidity has as much to do with comfort as temperature.
One more tip to remember: If you are going to be out of the house, for four hours or longer, set your thermostat to 88 degrees. That keeps the humidity under control without cooling an empty house. This one step can save you 6-8% off energy bills.
What About Smart Thermostats?
If your home still has an old round thermostat, they’re costing you money. Today’s smart thermostats such as Nest units actually learn how you use heating and cooling systems and make adjustments automatically. The next best choice is a programmable one, though, in our experience, we find most programmable units running in manual mode.
Balancing comfort and cost in your Dayton home takes time to get right. Have questions? Call CJS at (937) 488-4758 for help mastering your thermostat this season.