Why Smart Thermostats Are Worth It

If you’re looking for a way to spend less money and energy in your home, it may be a worthwhile investment to explore getting a smart thermostat. These devices can do everything from track when you leave the house, so that it doesn’t throw away electricity heating or cooling a vacant home, to changing energy usage based on how many people are in a room or what time of day it is.

We’ll review what a smart thermostat is, how it works and why it’s worthwhile to purchase one. We’ll also talk about how it can help you save money on your energy bills by lowering energy consumption.

What Is a Smart Thermostat?

A smart thermostat is a programmable device that allows you to do it all from changing your heating and cooling settings for different times of day, to monitoring when people are in the house, so it isn’t needlessly consuming energy by heating or cooling a vacant home.

Most smart thermostats have learning capabilities, which means they pay attention to how you adjust your settings and make automatic adjustments over time based on what they learn from you.

A smart thermostat links to Wi-Fi, so you’ll be able to change and keep track of your energy usage from just about anywhere.

How Do Smart Thermostats Work?

A smart thermostat has learning algorithms and can connect with other smart home technology, such as Google Home, Amazon Alexa and Apple HomeKit, for improved control over your comfort. They’re compatible with most systems, such as home heating and air conditioning.

Smart thermostat features include a temperature sensor that can tell when the home is vacant, and then automatically adjust to an energy-efficient setting. Your smart thermostat may be able to geofence with your phone to know when you’re at home or out.

A smart thermostat does things like adjust more for rooms that are full or have more people in them, as well as monitor what time of day it is so it knows how much heating or air conditioning should be going.

Are Smart Thermostats Worth It?

For some people, the answer is yes. If you do a lot of travel or are out for many hours during the day, it may be worth your money to get one of these thermostats. You could save a lot, especially if you forget to change it when you leave for the office or go out of town for the weekend.

You won’t have to worry about whether your smart thermostat is on the right program, or if you remembered to change the temperature setting before you went out. It doesn’t require much effort on your part, but you’ll see it in reduced energy bills.

Smart Thermostats vs. Programmable Thermostats

Most homeowners have a standard programmable thermostat, but 40% of them aren’t set properly. This means you could be missing opportunities to save on heating and cooling costs.

Smart thermostats are handy because they learn your schedule and automate heating and cooling that corresponds. You can set a comparable schedule on a programmable thermostat. But it’s more work to program your thermostat manually.

A smart thermostat conveniently adjusts and progressively changes the temperature inside your home for the greatest energy savings. If you manually adjust a programmable thermostat, you can overburden your HVAC system and make it work harder to meet your adjustments.

Do Smart Thermostats Save Energy?

Yes, since your smart thermostat will learn from your temperature preferences and routine to make a schedule that saves on heating and cooling costs. You don’t have to do much as your thermostat does all the work for you while conserving money.

You can get the same energy savings with a programmable thermostat, but it’s going to take a little bit more work than a smart thermostat. To set up a schedule on programmable models, we advise following these guidelines from ENERGY STAR® to save energy.

Recommended Temperature Settings for Your Heating System

• • Wake: Below 70 degrees.

• • Day: Set back at least 8 degrees, if no one is home.

• • Evening: Greater than 70 degrees.

• • Sleep: Decrease at least 8 degrees.

Recommended Temperature Settings for Your Cooling System

• • Wake: Greater than 78 degrees.

• • Day: Set up at least 7 degrees, if no one is there.

• • Evening: Cooler than 78 degrees.

• • Sleep: Increase at least 4 degrees.

As you can see, you don’t have to get a smart thermostat to spend less on your energy bill. All you need is a programmable thermostat, but it’s essential to note that any savings may come at the cost of your comfort and convenience.

Do Smart Thermostats Save Money

Nest, one of the most prominent smart thermostat manufacturers, says its smart thermostat saves U.S. homeowners about:

• • 10-12% on your heating bill

• • 15% on your cooling bill

• • $131 to $145 on your energy bill each year

Your smart thermostat will give you a monthly heating and cooling report, which usually compares you to other residences in the area.

Your possible savings vary based on your house, where you live, how much insulation you have and your desired temperature settings. You might experience average savings, significant savings or somewhere in the middle.

If you’re finding you’re only seeing minimal savings on energy costs, you might be optimizing for energy efficiency already. This includes turning off your HVAC system when you’re not at home or moving your thermostat up/down when you’re asleep.

Smart thermostats make this simple through their hands-off process that slowly shifts the temperature. If you’re at home a lot, it might not save you much on energy costs as is the point in an automated, energy-efficient schedule.

How to Get a Smart Thermostat Rebate

Most utility companies offer rebates to homeowners who purchase energy-saving, ENERGY STAR-certified equipment such as a smart thermostat. The rebate amount varies by company, but in most instances, it will cover most or all the cost. To learn more, visit your utility company’s website for rebate info.

Depend On the Experts for Your Smart Thermostat Needs

Getting a smart thermostat is an investment, but it can help you spend less money in the end. If you’ve been thinking about getting one and want to know if they work as promised, we offer free home comfort assessments. Call our Experts at 954-736-4314 to request yours today!