From a tropical vacation or a lengthy trip for work, taking a trip means making plans for your heating and cooling system. You won’t be using it if you’re on a trip, so you can adjust the temperature as appropriate to minimize your energy use. At the same time, you don’t want to just turn it off for the entire time you're gone.
Instead, it’s ideal to leave your HVAC system running and just raise or lower depending on whether it's winter or summer. That way you can minimize energy costs without stressing about getting back to an uncomfortable home. We’ll review why you shouldn’t turn your HVAC system off as well as the most energy-efficient thermostat settings for different times of year.
Here’s Why You Shouldn’t Leave Your Thermostat on Hold
While you could be wanting to shut your HVAC system down before a trip, this can end up causing big problems by the time you return. This is particularly true when the weather will be severely hot or cold while you’re out of town.
For instance, switching the HVAC system down during the summer will sometimes produce very high humidity. Not only will your home feel gross when you come back, but it may have also encouraged mold/mildew growth or pest infestations.
And over the winter, letting your house get cold could lead to pipes freezing up or even bursting. It’s never fun to return home from a nice trip only to come across considerable water damage close to a broken pipe.
Energy-Efficient Thermostat Settings While at Work
You can make temperature adjustments even as you come and go to work. Considering you’re out of the house for about 8 hours or longer, it doesn’t seem sensible to keep an empty home heated or cooled as if you were there. As a general rule, it’s encouraged to adjust the thermostat by 5 degrees or so. Meaning that if you prefer a comfortable 72 degrees, try raising it to 76-77 while you’re at work.
But you could save even more if you try further adjustments to the temperature. According to the Department of Energy, you could save nearly 10% on your HVAC spending by increasing the adjustment to 7-10 degrees.
Ideal Thermostat Settings While on Vacation in Summer
If you’re leaving for an extended trip in the middle of summer, you can make larger adjustments. This prevents wasting energy while still protecting your home from the issues that come with leaving it un-air conditioned. Around 5 degrees is suitable for short trips while closer to 10 degrees is worthwhile if you’ll be away from home for 2 weeks or more. If you prefer keeping the house at 72 in the summer, 78-82 should offer beneficial results.
Ideal Thermostat Settings While on Vacation in Winter
To figure out the most energy-efficient thermostat setting for a winter vacation, just lower the temperature by the same amount you would increase it in summer. 68 is a frequent winter thermostat setting, so lowering it to 63-58 will prevent ice from forming on pipes while limiting how often your furnace runs.
A Smart Thermostat Can Help: Perks of a Smart Thermostat
A great way to regulate your home’s HVAC system while out of the house is using a smart thermostat. This innovative type of programmable thermostat uses intelligent software to monitor your typical comfort habits. It learns these preferences and makes automatic changes to the schedule for maximum energy efficiency. And with Wi-Fi integration, you can remotely control your heating and cooling with a smart device like a phone or tablet.
Smart thermostats are packed with features to help you save even more. To provide an example, specific models can monitor electricity prices to increase heating or cooling when prices are lowest. They are compatible with high-efficiency, variable-speed equipment to refine how long your HVAC system should run. It’s the optimal tool to enhance how you use your comfort system. If you’re planning on investing in a smart thermostat, there are multiple ways you can lower your costs, effectively getting a smart thermostat for free. The next time you are away from home, you can enjoy true peace of mind that your HVAC system won’t cause any trouble while you’re gone.