Air Conditioner Energy Saving Tips

What are AC thermostat replacement costs?

A programmable thermostat can be a great energy saving option for just about anybody. All around Kentuckiana, a programmable is a necessity to keep you cool and your costs down. They optimize your home’s temperature based on when you’re awake or asleep, and when you’re home or away. If all this new technology seems intimidating, don’t worry about this one. Programmable thermostats are easy to work, just about as simple as setting your alarm clock once you get the hang of it. To get the most savings you can even set a schedule that works for you instead of sticking with the pre-programmed settings.

How to install a programmable thermostat?

Types of Programmable Thermostats

Programmable thermostats come in four different types based on different styles of scheduling. These schedules are based on waking, sleeping, leaving, and returning.

7-day programming: If you are a person without a consistent schedule, this could be the thermostat for you. You get to create a different heating/cooling schedule for every day of the week. This version has the most range of flexibility.

1-week programming: On the flip side, this is the thermostat with the least amount of flexibility. You create one schedule that repeats everyday of the week. The bonus is that, as you might expect, this is the cheapest option.

5-2 programing: Landing in the middle is 5-2 programming which holds 2 schedules – one for weekdays and one for weekend days.

5-1-1 programming: Similar to 5-2 programming, this set up has a weekday schedule and then separate plans for Sunday and for Saturday.

Best Practices

The US Department of Energy has some guidelines for creating a program that works best for all your cooling and heating needs. Following these can take off up to 15% of the total cost of your energy bill. It takes some time to tweak these guidelines to fit your needs, but they pay off long term.

  • For winter months program the temperature to 68 degrees. For summer set it to 78 degrees.
  • Program your thermostat to shut down 20 to 30 minutes before you leave home and boot up 20 to 30 minutes before you return.
  • 60 minutes before going to bed, program your thermostat to reduce heat or cooling, and then increase it 30 minutes before you wake up.

 

While these changes may seem small, taking the time to set this up will keep you cool and lower your energy costs to make your utility bill more manageable.

High Quality Thermostats

In addition to having the ability to set programmable schedules, high quality have many other great energy saving feature for you to utilize.

WiFi-enabled: With a thermostat connected to WiFi you have the amazing ability to control your cooling and heating settings from home and anywhere else where you’re connected to the internet. This can really come in handy if you’re on vacation or are coming home late. You can change your thermostat settings at home or from your mobile device.

High-tech settings: Just like the rest of the technological world, thermostats have come a long way with creating colorful displays and interactive experiences. Besides aesthetics however, they can also alert you to potential maintenance problems thus preventing an issue from growing worse.

Auto-schedule: If you think that a programmable thermostat is too complicated, you haven’t met an auto-scheduling thermostat. Consider the Nest Learning Thermostat. No programming required. The thermostat learns from your living patterns in about a week.

With a programmable thermostat all you have to do is set it and forget it. Then watch the energy savings roll in while you keep cool. Don’t forget that we’re here to help! As HVAC experts, we know about all things heating and cooling. Contact us today to learn more about your thermostat options for energy savings.

If your intimidated by the installation of a thermostat or any do-it-yourself AC repair, then you should give us a call or schedule an appointment online. Our expert repair technicians have the experience to handle live electrical circuits. They can quickly install your thermostat so you can start saving money and energy.