A programmable thermostat is a powerful tool that can help reduce your energy bills in Cincinnati. By programming your thermostat schedule around your household's needs, saving money is nearly automatic. Here are some guidelines you can use to help set your thermostat for savings, and keep your home comfortable.

Through daily schedules, a programmable thermostat lets you adjust air conditioning or heating based on your needs. Programming your thermostat with proper settings for a daily or weekly schedule will increase savings. For instance, if your home is empty during the day, increase the temperature in the summer or reduce it in the winter for savings. You can achieve savings with a manual thermostat, but you'll be likely to forget to adjust your thermostat, and you'll waste energy heating or cooling an empty house, and increase utility expenses.

Programming your thermostat at energy-saving set points for periods of eight or more hours is the key to reducing your household's utility bills. Adjusting the thermostat 10 to 15 degrees during this time frame can help save about 10 percent per year on your utility bills. You don't have to be gone to use this strategy, however; use it while you sleep, too. By programming your thermostat to raise or lower the temperature, depending on the season, around your sleep schedule, you'll save money and likely won't notice a change in temperature during these hours.

Units with adaptive recovery features can eliminate the discomfort of coming home to a house that is too hot or too cold. This feature calculates the time it will take to reach the pre-programmed temperature, and gets to work early so your home will be at the programmed temperature when the schedule begins, while saving maximum energy.

If your schedule suddenly changes, you can conveniently delete the programmable thermostat's settings without having to manually adjust the device by using the "override" or "hold" feature, depending on the model you choose.

Programming your thermostat to control your household's energy consumption will help reduce utility costs. Differing models are available with features and programming capabilities to fit your needs. If you'd like to learn more about programmable thermostats, contact Tri-County Heating & Cooling. We've been serving Butler County and the Greater Cincinnati area for 40 years.

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