Guest blogger Tom Harrison is the CTO of EnergyCircle.com.
It's fall, and for most of us that means the weather's a-changin'. In Boston, it will go from being unbearably hot and muggy to bone-chillingly cold, after only 11 brisk, delightful days when the leaves turn red and everyone says "Ah, this is why we live in New England."
So it's time to program your thermostat!
Energy Star says you can save about $180 a year by doing so...unless you're like most people. Studies show that most people with programmable thermostats don't actually save energy. Fortunately, you are not like most people!
Here's why most people don’t save money with their programmable thermostat:
- A quarter just don't program or install them (fear, uncertainty, complexity, apathy, etc.).
- Half override the programmed settings.
- Many use default settings which are too conservative.
- People have an incorrect "mental model" of heating and cooling.
This last point: People think setting the heat too low will use more energy to get the heat back up than just leaving it on. Scientists disagree. But then, scientists believe that gravity exists (even if you jump when an elevator gets to the bottom). Boring scientists.
So here's what you should do with your programmable thermostat:
- Decide on a good "at home" temperature (hint: 68 degrees), and a good "shouldn't get colder" temperature (hint: 60 degrees).
- Figure out your usual schedule, like up at 7, work at 9, back at 5, bed at 11. (Geez, you're more boring than those scientists!)
- Guess how long it takes to heat your house from 60 to 68 degrees—say, 2 hours on a cold day—and how long to cool off—say, 1 hour on a cold day.
- Program your thermostat to 68 degrees 2 hours before you get up and before you come home; set it to 60 degrees 1 hour before you go to work and before bed.
The real trick is to pay attention. If you're hitting “override” by December, adjust the programming. If your schedule changes, change the program. If you are OK with going to 55 at night, go for it (blankets really do work). Here's a cool site from Energy Star that walks you through programming.
Fear not the programmable thermostat—it can be your friend, and if you use my hints, you could save even more than Energy Star estimates! For you are a Hohmie, and not like "most people."
Here's a programmable thermostat that looks nice and is easy to program we like at Energy Circle.
--Tom Harrison