A smart thermostat is a worthwhile investment for your home. It can reduce your energy consumption and lower your cooling costs. A smart thermostat can also make your home more comfortable and improve your quality of life. Let’s explore many of the modern smart thermostat features that make these improvements possible.
Lowered Cooling Costs
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) estimates that households that upgrade to a smart thermostat can lower cooling costs by 10%–15%. Smart thermostats are highly accurate digital systems that support scheduling, which some brands call programming. To save 10% on cooling, the DOE advises setting your thermostat 7–10 degrees higher than usual at least eight hours a day. Through scheduling, most households can do this easily during the periods when people are away from home.
Many smart thermostats also have smart setback. Consider that an air conditioner consumes more energy achieving a particular temperature than it does maintaining it. This feature monitors the system’s transition periods and makes them more efficient over time.
Profiles are another common feature. This lets household members have one profile for weekdays and another for weekends. Vacation mode is also notable. It makes it simple to reduce your cooling costs drastically whenever you’ll be away from the home for 48 hours or more. Many systems also have learning capabilities that let them adjust your programming based on your actual habits.
You may also want to consider geofencing. This feature lets your smart thermostat track you through your phone’s GPS. This is useful because life is unpredictable, and a strict schedule will sometimes fail you. If you have to leave early one morning or come home earlier than usual in the afternoon, your thermostat will know about it and adjust accordingly.
A Note About Heat Pumps
Heat pumps work just like air conditioners when in cooling mode, but they also provide heat. It’s important to note that not all smart thermostats support heat pumps in heat mode. Purchasing your new thermostat through a trusted HVAC company will ensure that you get the right unit for your system.
Reduced Carbon Footprint
Improved energy efficiency isn’t just a matter of saving money. It also helps protect the environment. Many homeowners are unaware that their ACs are the biggest contributor to their household carbon footprints. If every American upgraded to a smart thermostat, we would offset 13 billion pounds of greenhouse gas emissions annually. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) also reports that we’d use 56 trillion British thermal units (BTUs) less energy.
ENERGY STAR Certification
Another reason to consider a smart thermostat is ENERGY STAR certification. Many models on the market, including very affordable ones, have this certification, which gives you peace of mind. It means that independent testing on the model has proven energy savings through field data.
Remote Monitoring and Control
The core feature that makes a thermostat smart is Wi-Fi. This feature lets your thermostat communicate with other smart devices and connect to the internet. Consider a scenario in which you’ve left on your trip and forgotten to put the system in vacation mode. It’s not a problem because you can enable it from your phone. However, you don’t have to be far away to take advantage of this feature. If you’re sitting on the couch and feeling cold, you can raise the temperature without getting up.
Peak Rates and Utility Programs
Many electric companies now offer opt-in programs with summertime energy savings in mind. These programs require a smart thermostat and give your utility company light control over your system during peak usage periods. In return, you get a credit that helps offset your cooling costs. Even if your utility doesn’t offer such a program, many thermostats now support peak rate programming or real-time monitoring. This lets the thermostat turn the setting up a bit to avoid high costs during those periods.
Remote Sensors
Consider a smart thermostat that supports multiple remote sensors. You’ll save energy through more accurate data about the temperature throughout your home. You can also add other sensors, such as sensors for RH, indoor air quality (IAQ), carbon monoxide (CO) and so forth.
Energy Monitoring and Reporting
Most of the top brands offer energy monitoring and reporting through their smart thermostats. These features have only gotten more sophisticated as the manufacturers have taken advantage of cloud computing. These systems can track your usage hour by hour. They can provide your alerts and notifications based on parameters you choose. You can also set the system to send reports that can help you identify when and why your household is consuming significantly more energy.
Proactive Maintenance and Repairs
A spike in electricity consumption is often the first sign there’s something wrong with your AC. It’s why the industry recommends tracking energy consumption month to month and year to year. Prior to smart thermostats, it wasn’t easy to notice changes right away. Homeowners would often go a month or more before realizing they were using significantly more energy. Your smart thermostat can identify a surge in usage right away. It can then send an alert to your phone to schedule an HVAC inspection.
Automatic Updates
Automatic updates are another reason that modern smart thermostats are a great investment. Fixed programming often limited the long-term usefulness of older-generation smart thermostats. You might have had to swap them out for a newer, more efficient model long before the device itself went bad. Newer systems can download new programming as soon as it’s available. That greatly extends the effective lifespan of thermostats that support this feature.
Rebates
Rebates are another important reason why a smart thermostat is a summer essential. Use the ENERGY STAR rebate finder to discover rebates available to you based on your ZIP code. You can also check with your utility company. Many offer their own rebates, and you can often stack those offers together. Homeowners can often upgrade with very little of their own money in the initial investment.
Smart Thermostat Installation in Solano and Yolo Counties
Greiner Heating, Air, and Electric is a local business that’s served area homeowners throughout Dixon, CA and the surrounding areas for many years. Our HVAC technicians install and program smart thermostats. We also specialize in central AC, ductless AC, furnaces, heat pumps and ductless mini-splits. We have experts in energy audits, HVAC zoning, air sealing, attic insulation and air purifiers. Our company also has electricians that perform electrical repairs and upgrades electrical panels. They install outdoor lighting, EV chargers, solar panels and generators. You can also count on our team for tank water heater services.
Contact out team at Greiner Heating, Air, and Electric today to schedule a consultation or service appointment.
