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Saving energy with Thermostats and Control Systems
from:By turning the thermostat down 10 degrees, you can save 10% every year. This can be done without sacrificing the comfort by installing a programmable thermostat or by doing it manually. A programmable thermostat will guarantee you do not forget to adjust the settings, which will also provide the benefits of continuously changing the temperature when you are not home or in bed at night.
The beauty of the thermostat is you can set the programmed times so you will not to remember to change the settings manually. By allowing the thermostat to do all the work, you will only have to set back and see the lower utility bill each month.
The programmable thermostats have multiple settings for the day so you can regulate the settings for the time you are home and want a higher temperature. This means on the weekends when you are home you change the settings for the weekends and have different settings for the daytime then the settings used during the week when you are at work.
The ideal temperature for the winter is 68 degrees. Turning the temperature down to 68 degrees in during the winter can save 5% -15% on the heating bill. All of this savings for lowering the thermostat as well as setting it lower while you are not at home.
In the summer, the ideal setting is 78 degrees while at home. Set it higher when you are not at home. Change the settings to cool the home shortly before you return so you get the benefit of coming home to a comfortably cool home.
The common misconception of using the thermostat is the furnish will have to work harder to heat the cooler home, yet this have been proven false over the years by intense studies. The true aspect of lowering the temperature is the fuel used to reheat the home is about equal to the fuel saved while the temperature in the home has dropped. You save fuel between the times it takes the temperature to level out at the lower temperature until the next time the heat is needed. The longer the temperature is lowered the more money saved.
Programmable thermostats are not recommended for heat pumps. The heat pump is used in the cooling mode as an air conditioner so using the programmable thermostat for the cooling process will be all right; it is when the heat pump produces heat the inefficiency of the heat pump will occur. There are programmable thermostats specifically designed for heat pumps to add to their energy efficiency.
An electric baseboard heater requires thermostats capable of directly controlling the 120 volt or 240 volt circuits. Only limited amounts of companies have manufactured the line-voltage programmable thermostats.
The response time is a problem with radiant or steam heating systems. Both systems have several hours the response time. In the past, this was a problem. Now there are manufacturers who offer thermostats, which can track the performance of the heating systems that will turn on the system in order to provide comfortable temperatures based on the programmable thermostat.
The benefits of using the programmable thermostats are it saves money while providing consistent heat or cool air. This is very appealing to the energy-minded individuals.
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