Optimizing Setting a Thermostat
Posted by easy eco blog
The average household will spend over $1100 staying warm during the winter. This cost just keeps going straight up. You can lower your heating costs by 5% for every 1 degree lower you set your thermostat. Easily save $200 a year.
We realized that we were not setting our thermostat optimally, when we saw some tips that result in lower energy use. We would set the thermostat to heat to my desired temperature of 65 degrees from 6pm to 7am. Many people will prefer 68 degrees, but we like wearing sweaters at home. (Or are so cheap we have to)
A more optimal method is to set the thermostat to 65 for 6pm to 11pm to cover the hours when people are in the house and awake. Set it to 55 or whatever your lifestyle allows, while sleeping, 11pm – 6:30am. Then add an entry for 65 degrees for 630am to 7am to warm up the house before you wake up and head out. The theory is that the house does not need to be heated up that much while people are sleeping.
If you do not have a programmable thermostat, buy one. Ours costs under $30. Look for ones that allow you to have different schedules for weekdays and weekends. Some have additional program schedules for heating and cooling.
Related posts:
Filed under: Conservation, Easy, Effort, Energy, Green, Home, Reduce | Tags: Thermostat
If you enjoyed this post, be sure to subscribe to our RSS feed.
One Response to “Optimizing Setting a Thermostat”
Leave a Reply
Please do not put your URL in the comment text and please use your PERSONAL name or initials and not your business name.
December 22nd, 2009 at 11:41 am
The sun shines in winter, too.
Cats have this figured out – on cold winter days, if you own a cat, chances are he or she is lying in a sunbeam on the floor. You, too, can take advantage of the slanted winter sunshine by opening curtains and shades and letting the sun in. Take note, however, at what time the sun moves away from that particular window and cover it accordingly.