Between a relaxing vacation or an extended trip for work, leaving home means making preparations for your home comfort system. You won’t be using it as long as you’re on a trip, so you can adjust it as appropriate to conserve your energy use. Simultaneously, you don’t want to just turn it off for the entire time you're out of the house.
Instead, it’s better to leave your HVAC system running and adjust the temperature depending on whether it's winter or summer. That way you can minimize energy costs without having to worry about coming back to an uncomfortable home. We’ll walk you through why you shouldn’t turn your HVAC system off as well as the best thermostat settings for summer and winter.
Here’s Why You Don't Leave Your Thermostat on Hold
While you could be tempted to leave your HVAC system off before a trip, this could 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.
As an example, shutting the HVAC system off during the summer will sometimes produce very high humidity. Not only will your home feel like a swamp when you return, but it could have also stimulated mold/mildew growth or pest infestations.
And in the winter, not using the furnace might lead to pipes freezing up or even bursting. It’s exhausting to get home from a nice trip only to come across considerable water damage near a broken pipe.
Ideal Thermostat Settings While at Work
You can optimize the temperature even if you’re coming and going to work. Because you’re away for about 8 hours or longer, it doesn’t make sense to keep an empty home the same temperature as when you're home. As a general rule, it’s recommended to turn up the thermostat by 5 degrees or so. This means 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. As reported by the Department of Energy, you may save around 10% on your HVAC costs by making an adjustment of 7-10 degrees.
Energy-Efficient Thermostat Settings While on a Trip in Summer
If you're on a lengthier trip in the middle of summer, you can make bigger adjustments. This ensures you don’t waste energy while still defending your home from the problems that come with leaving it uncooled. Something like 5 degrees is appropriate for brief trips while a larger adjustment of 10 degrees is ideal if you’ll be gone for 2 weeks or more. If you enjoy keeping the house at 72 in the summer, 78-82 can offer beneficial results.
Best Thermostat Settings While On a Trip in Winter
To try and find the ideal thermostat setting for a winter trip, just lower the temperature by the same amount you would adjust it in summer. 68 is a popular winter thermostat setting, so adjusting to 63-58 will keep your plumbing safe while minimizing how long your furnace runs.
A Smart Thermostat Can Help: Perks of a Smart Thermostat
An ideal strategy to optimize your home’s HVAC system while away from home is by investing in a smart thermostat. This innovative type of programmable thermostat utilizes intelligent software to understand your typical comfort habits. It applies these preferences and makes automatic adjustments to the schedule for better energy efficiency. And with Wi-Fi connectivity, you can remotely access your HVAC system with a mobile device or tablet.
Smart thermostats are packed with features to help you save on your energy bill. For example, specific models can monitor electricity prices to increase heating or cooling when prices are more affordable. They can also work with high-efficiency, variable-speed equipment to optimize how long your HVAC system has to run. It’s the ideal tool to simplify how you control your comfort system. If you’re considering investing in a smart thermostat, there are multiple ways you can reduce your costs, essentially getting a smart thermostat for free. The next time you leave for vacation, you can appreciate true peace of mind that your HVAC system won’t cause any trouble while you’re away.