Did you know there's a better way to fine-tune your home's temperature levels while saving you money and increasing your comfort level? Whether you're at home or away on vacation, smart comfort control devices enable you to enjoy optimal temperature levels according to your lifestyle. Not only that, modern thermostats give you the flexibility to customize temperatures for every room in your home and automate temperatures when you're asleep or away.
Read on to find out how energy-saving thermostats and "zoning" systems can leave more money in your wallet and improve your home life.
How Programmable Thermostats Save You Energy
Digital programmable thermostats give you complete control of your comfort level. Just set the thermostat to adjust according to your family's schedule. Do you sleep better at a certain temperature? Do you like to wake up in a warm and cozy room? A programmable thermostat enables you to store pre-determined temperature settings for every day of the week. But, of course, schedules can change without notice. You can manually override the settings without affecting your daily or weekly programming. According to the Department of Energy, you can save 5% to 15% annually on your heating bill simply by turning your thermostat back 10 to 15 degrees for 8 hours.
Creating an Efficient Zoning System
You now have learned how a programmable thermostat can save you money, but what about improving comfort levels? One thermostat can't provide the ideal conditions for every room, especially if your home is more than one story. Every room in your home gains or loses heat at different rates, making it difficult for a single thermostat to effectively control your entire home's temperature. That is where zoning comes in.
Zoning involves segmenting different areas of your home according to their common heating and cooling requirements. Each zone is then controlled through its own thermostat. Save money and energy when you specify different "setpoints" for different zones.
Things to Consider When Zoning
Not many people realize that the location of your thermostat is conducive to its performance and efficiency. False readings, commonly referred to as "ghost" readings, occur when an outside element affects its readings. For your thermostat to operate at its peak performance level, place it on an interior wall away from:
- Direct sunlight
- Drafts
- Doorways
- Skylights
- Windows
- Direct heat source (fireplace, hot water pipes, etc)
Once you have your thermostat properly placed, you can begin designing your zoning system. First, consider some common sense rules. For example, never combine rooms from different floors on the same zone. Since hot air rises and cold air sinks, you will cancel out any potential savings and comfort level. Also, try to have a minimum of two registers per zone in case something blocks one's airflow.
Interested in setting up an efficient zoning system for your home? Give us a call at (888) 600-3331. We can help determine how zoning can save you money and improve your home comfort level.
