| Maintaining a comfortable temperature level in your | | | | year. You won't have to be uncomfortable when you |
| home is the biggest hitter on your energy bills. Did | | | | get home because your smart new thermostat will |
| you know that your heating and cooling system | | | | have made an automatic adjustment and started |
| accounts for around 45% of your total utility cost? | | | | working towards your desired temperature before |
| The easiest and most cost effective advice I can | | | | you get home. |
| give you is simply adjusting your thermostat up in | | | | There are of course a wide variety of programmable |
| the summer and down in the winter. | | | | thermostats ranging from inexpensive to highly |
| This suggestion probably sounds obvious to most but | | | | advanced and very costly. You can get the job done |
| many are unwilling to even consider making a small | | | | with a very basic version found at any home |
| adjustment. I'm not expecting anyone to be | | | | improvement store. Anyone can switch out a |
| uncomfortable in their own home, but you can save | | | | thermostat even if you aren't the advanced DIY |
| 3% per degree in the winter and 3-4% per degree in | | | | type. Thermostats run off of low voltage so there's |
| the summer. Now 2 or 3 degrees is hard to physically | | | | no need to worry about electric shock, just follow |
| notice but can reduce your energy consumption | | | | the provided instructions and your upgrade will be |
| throughout the year considerably. How about a | | | | done in less than 10 minutes. |
| 6-10% yearly savings, are you willing to consider a | | | | Very important notice of extreme money and |
| small bump now? | | | | energy waste |
| Another thing to consider is installing a programmable | | | | Keep in mind that cranking your thermostat way up |
| thermostat. You can program these thermostats to | | | | or down doesn't actually make your system heat or |
| automatically change the desired temperature of | | | | cool any faster, so adjust your thermostat in small |
| your home while you are away at work or on | | | | increments. In fact, if you have a heat pump installed |
| vacation effectively saving you money. Of course | | | | and you crank the heat way up, it may actually turn |
| you could do this yourself before leaving but the | | | | on the backup or emergency heat which can turn on |
| possibility of forgetting is always there. | | | | heat strips and unnecessarily jack your electric bill up |
| A programmable thermostat is a great cost effective | | | | costing you money and wasting energy. |
| solution and will easily pay for itself in less than a | | | | |