Save Money with Programmable Thermostats

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, having an HVAC system that is well-maintained and operated efficiently can save you up to 30% off of your energy bills.  For the average homeowner in Massachusetts, that could mean up to $800 per year!

One of the best ways to start saving money is to install programmable thermostats in your home.  Programmable thermostats allow you to set the temperatures in your home according to your family’s schedule, so that you aren’t heating and cooling areas when or where it’s not needed.

The automatic nature of programmable thermostats makes them a convenient way to get big energy savings.  Most homes, especially older ones, still use manual thermostats to control room temperature.  You set them to the desired temperature and let the system bring the space to that temperature.  But, setting your temperature manually every day presents a problem:  namely, you have to remember to change the settings yourself.  The problem with manual thermostats in today's energy-conscious age is that they require the homeowner to remember to adjust them in order to enjoy energy savings.

What if you leave for a few days and forget to turn down the thermostat?  Your furnace is working hard to keep an empty house comfortable.  And, what if you forget to turn up the temperature before going to bed?  You’re likely to wake up to cold rooms.  Programmable thermostats eliminate the hassle of having to manually change temperature settings.  They prevent your HVAC system from wasting fuel so that you can enjoy ideal home comfort without paying more than you have to for it.

The savings from using a programmable thermostat alone could be as high as 10% per year off of your heating and cooling costs.  And, by setting your thermostat to maintain the desired temperature for four or five hours a day instead of 24 hours, it will pay for itself in energy savings within about four years.  To take advantage of these savings, you put the thermostat on a pre-set schedule.  This type of thermostat can store and repeat multiple daily settings, which means that you can program it to maintain several different temperatures during the day.

Energy Star qualified models adhere to even stricter standards regarding energy efficiency.  So, ask us if one of these units is a good option for you.

Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about saving money with programmable thermostats and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Solutions Guide.

Rodenhiser Plumbing, Heating and Air Conditioning serves the Route 495/128 area of Massachusetts. To get started, check out our website or see our current promotions.