How Do Programmable Thermostats Work In Bay Area Homes?

Who wouldn't like to save money while sleeping or away from home? You could save a considerable amount of energy without sacrificing comfort simply by using a programmable thermostat.

Take advantage of this guide to be able to program energy-saving configurations matched to your schedule, and for your specific cooling and heating systems.

Programmable thermostat functions

Programmable thermostats present an array of features that will make programming temperature changes a breeze. Large touch screen displays help to make navigation uncomplicated and intuitive. Program and store as many as 6 temperature changes on a daily basis. For quick temperature changes, manually bypass the programmed setting by selecting "Hold" without changing the rest of the daily or weekly programs.

Choosing the proper thermostat

It's important to match compatible programmable thermostats with HVAC systems. For example, if you have a heat pump, you'll have to have a two-stage programmable thermostat. Or else, when room temperature drops more than a few degrees below a standard thermostat's set point, the heat pump's back-up electric resistance heating powers on, and energy savings go out your window. A 2-stage thermostat stops backup heat from turning on.

Boilers and under floor heating systems have a slow reaction time. You'll need a thermostat that monitors heating performance, and automatically changes the start up time to meet the heating requirements to your scheduled program. For those who have electric baseboard heating, you'll require a line-voltage thermostat able to contrl 120-volt or 240-volt circuits. Your HVAC specialist will help you select the right thermostat for your home heating system.

Just how much energy am I going to save?

Government figures reveal that cooling and heating costs can be decreased by about 1 % for each and every degree the thermostat is lowered (heating months) or raised (cooling months) for an 8-hour time period. To illustrate, if you set back (heating months) the thermostat eight degrees during sleeping hours, and kept that very same setting during your workday (total 16+ hours), you'd save roughly 16 percent, and maybe more, heating costs in that 24-hour period.

For additional information about programmable thermostats, email or call Sandium Heating & Air San Jose and the whole metro south SF Bay Area.