Control Your Comfort With A Programmable Thermostat

Being comfortable at home starts with your HVAC system, and more specifically, your thermostat! If you want to be even more comfortable in your home while also saving money, you need a programmable thermostat. These thermostats are perfect for keeping up with your lifestyle to keep your home cool and comfortable while you’re home, and maximize efficiency while you’re away. Learn how you can control your comfort with a programmable thermostat.

Types of Programmable Thermostats

There are several different types of programmable thermostats so you can choose the best one for your home. How do you know which one to choose? They each have distinctive scheduling styles to program perfectly along with your lifestyle. The different scheduling styles are as follows:

7 day programming – these thermostats let you program a different schedule for every day of the week. This is good for those whose schedules are ever-changing as it is the most flexible scheduling option.
5-1-1 programming – these thermostats can be scheduled monday-friday, and differently on each day of the weekend. This is great for those who work during the week, and do different things on Saturdays vs Sundays. This option also allows good flexibility in your scheduling.
5-2 programming – these thermostats allow you to set a schedule for monday-friday, and a separate schedule for Saturday-Sunday. These offer a bit less flexibility, but can always be temporarily changed on a dime!
1 week programming – these thermostats have the same heating or cooling plan for the entire week. They have less flexibility but of course, can be changed whenever your schedule changes.

Seasonal Scheduling

Of course, no matter what your schedule looks like throughout the week, your thermostat settings should be different during the winter and summer. As the weather gets warmer, have your thermostat set to run on “cool” at temperatures between 70-74 for optimal energy savings. During the colder months, have your thermostat programmed to run on “heat” at temperatures between 68-72 for optimal energy savings.

Identify Your Equipment

Before purchasing a programmable thermostat, it’s important to ensure that your HVAC system is compatible with the technology. Different systems communicate with the thermostat in different ways, so having an HVAC professional come by to inspect your system will keep you from making any unnecessary or costly purchases. An HVAC professional can also help you choose the best thermostat for your family, lifestyle, and budget.

Money-Saving Scheduling Tips

Most households are unoccupied for around 8 hours a day, with adults being at work and children being in school. If this is true for you, even for different circumstances, you could be saving on your energy bills! Programmable thermostats are set on your schedule so you can save money while you’re away, and be comfortable whenever you’re home. Here are some daily programming tips for scheduling your thermostat to your lifestyle:

Decrease your heat or increase your air 3-5 degrees 30 minutes before going to bed each night. You could be saving money in your sleep!
In the morning, have the thermostat set back to your normal temperatures 30 minutes before waking up (if you get ready in less than an hour, there’s no need to change the thermostat during this time).
Turn your heating or air conditioning down/up 10 degrees 30 minutes before leaving your home (for maximum energy savings).
30 minutes before you return, have the temperature set to normal again (you never even have to feel any uncomfortable temperatures).
Repeat throughout the week.

Vacation Scheduling

Programmable and smart thermostats are great to keep up with your normal schedule, or for times when your schedule changes, such as going on vacation or staying home for a long weekend. During these times, you can set a temporary schedule on your thermostat that’s hourly, or you can reprogram the thermostat to be changed for an extended period of time.

Choose the Right Thermostat

At Childress Heating & Cooling, we offer a number of programmable thermostats so you can choose the right one for your unique lifestyle. With the ever-changing, internet-enabled world, we’ve made it possible to control your comfort from your fingertips with our Nexia Smart Thermostats. Want to keep holding on to traditional thermostats? Our American Standard hard-working, reliable thermostats suit every system and any budget while still giving you control of your home’s comfort right at your fingertips.

To view the thermostats we offer in the Southside, AL area, visit our Products page on our website.