The U.S. Department of Energy encourages all households to consider investing in a smart thermostat. These are precise digital thermostats that you can schedule and access through your home network or the internet. Convenience and efficiency features can lower energy usage and costs. Let’s take a closer look at how smart thermostats accomplish this.
Scheduling
Scheduling or programming is a core feature of any programmable or smart thermostat. The main difference between these units is that a smart unit has Wi-Fi capabilities. Scheduling helps you avoid unnecessary energy usage by automatically adjusting the temperature. Many households can significantly reduce usage while sleeping. They can also lower consumption while at work and school. The DOE conservatively estimates up to 10% of savings for the average home.
Another factor is what the industry refers to as smart setbacks. Manually adjusting temperature for savings isn’t as effective. The reason for this is that it takes less energy to maintain a temperature than to achieve it. The period when a system is transitioning to an economy mode or back again is inherently inefficient. This is where the smart setback feature comes in. It monitors the system and adjusts that transitional period to maximize energy savings.
Profiles and Modes
Modes and profiles are an additional layer to scheduling that makes smart thermostat use even more effective. Two common smart thermostat modes are hold and vacation. Hold mode lets you easily override any active programming. Vacation mode simplifies putting the system in an energy-saving mode whenever you’ll be away for 48 hours or more. Profiles allow for contextual scheduling. Some households need a profile for weekdays and weekends. Others need a unique schedule for each day of the week. Some systems even support profiles for individual household members.
Adaptive Learning
Adaptive learning refers to machine learning capabilities. These capabilities are becoming more sophisticated as the industry leverages cloud computing and artificial intelligence. We’ve already described one form of adaptive learning in smart setbacks. There are also systems that can monitor household usage and update schedules automatically. This is particularly powerful for energy savings because the average household doesn’t update their schedules often enough. There are some models that you don’t even need to schedule. They’ll program themselves over the first several days and then continue to refine that schedule over time.
Geofencing
There are limitations to traditional programming for some households. Consider medical professionals on a work schedule that rotates every several days. It can be a hassle to manage all the profiles someone like that would need. This is where geofencing can be a big help. Smart thermostats with geofencing recognize a perimeter around the home. They also use location-based services to know whether household members are within the perimeter. These include GPS, RFID, Wi-Fi, and cellular data. When someone is home, the thermostat will maintain the comfort setting. If they are not home, it will maintain the energy-saving setting instead.
Remote Access and Control
Smart thermostats are a type of smart device that must have Wi-Fi capabilities by design. You can expect any product marketed as a smart thermostat to have that feature. Most brands also provide an app to connect to your thermostat from your phone easily. This allows you to adjust the temperature from the couch while watching television. It works over the internet too. Consider a situation in which you’ve left home on business and forgot to activate vacation mode. You can set that mode wherever you are, even many miles away.
Energy Usage Insights
Increased energy consumption is often an early sign of an HVAC problem. Systems with even minor issues can use a lot more energy and drive up your costs. That’s why experts recommend monitoring your energy bill month to month and year to year. The problem with that approach is that you may not notice excessive usage for a month or more.
Many smart thermostats have energy monitoring, and they can alert you to usage spikes immediately. They also collect that data and store it, often in the cloud. That allows for the analysis of the data and building individualized reports. These reports can provide you with great insight into how you can lower consumption even more.
Rate Awareness and Demand Response
Many local energy companies in the U.S. have time-of-use rates. This is where they’ll charge you a different price based on the time of day or the season. Some older models required you to enter this data manually. Most modern smart thermostats can update the data online automatically. In both cases, they can adjust the temperature automatically based on the rate. You may, for instance, instruct the thermostat to drop the AC by a couple degrees during peak rates.
Many of these companies also have demand response programs. These are opt-in programs that give your provider some control over your thermostat. During peak demand periods, your provider can adjust your thermostat automatically. In return, you receive benefits, usually in the form of energy credits. Check with your company to see if they offer such a program. If they do, make sure the thermostat you choose is on its compatibility list.
Predictive Maintenance
Smart thermostats with this feature collect performance data from the HVAC system over time. This allows the thermostat to detect when the system is operating outside normal parameters. It will then alert you to schedule a diagnostic appointment. Doing so will avoid excess energy consumption and expensive repairs.
HVAC Zoning
Zone control is a modern HVAC configuration in which the installer breaks the home up into zones. The energy-saving potential is about 30% for the average home. To facilitate this, you need several upgrades, including a smart thermostat that supports zoning.
Smart Home Integration
Smart thermostats are smart home devices in a general sense. You can access and control your smart thermostat through a home automation hub. You can also save money through direct communication with other smart devices. That includes:
- Smart vents
- Smart lighting
- Smart ceiling fans
- Smart refrigerators
- Smart shades and blinds
ENERGY STAR
ENERGY STAR is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy. Through the program, the EPA certifies a wide range of appliances and devices for energy efficiency. It does that through independent lab testing. Choosing an ENERGY STAR thermostat gives you confidence in the manufacturer’s claims and that the product is among the most efficient models in its class. Another advantage is that there are rebates available for ENERGY STAR thermostats through local utility companies and other organizations. Use the ENERGY STAR website to search for rebates available in your zip code.
Install a Smart Thermostat in San Marcos
Oak Island Heating and Air Conditioning has helped many homeowners throughout San Marcos, CA, reduce energy consumption and lower costs with smart thermostats. Our HVAC technicians install, maintain, and repair all types of heating and cooling systems, including heat pumps, furnaces, ACs, and mini-splits. We offer a maintenance agreement to save you money and reduce your energy usage even more. Our team specializes in HVAC zoning, air purifiers, UV lights, dehumidifiers, and humidifiers too.
Contact Oak Island Heating and Air Conditioning today to schedule an appointment in San Marcos or to learn more about the many products and services we offer.
