Benefits of Thermostat Upgrade: Costs, Automation, Data

There are a number of components that make up a working HVAC system, but one central item that controls them all: The thermostat. Responsible for both gauging the current temperature in a home or building, then informing the rest of the HVAC system when to provide conditioned air to bring temperature and air quality to the desired levels. For this, thermostats must be in good working  order to properly serve your needs.

At FLAME Heating & Cooling, we’re happy to offer numerous home HVAC services, including assistance with controls and home thermostats. No matter what time of year you’re considering a thermostat upgrade, there are several distinct benefits that come up when you make this move – so many, in fact, that we need this two-part blog series to go over all of them with you. Let’s get started.

Cost Decreases

First and foremost, let’s define what we’re talking about with a thermostat upgrade. If your home is still using an older manual thermostat, there are several reasons why upgrading to a programmable thermostat, or ideally a smart thermostat, is highly beneficial.

The first of these is your ability to decrease the costs that you’re paying. With a programmable thermostat, you can schedule your day in the thermostat itself – if you know that no one will be home for several hours in the afternoon while everyone is at work or school, you can set it to a higher or lower temperature (depending on whether it’s cooling or heating season) and use up far less unnecessary energy while you’re gone. Depending on the specifics of your home, this simple upgrade will often save you in the neighborhood of 15% on your monthly energy costs.

Automation Control and Convenience

Another downside of older thermostats is the limited control they offer. Most of them really only allow you to turn them on or off, plus set a temperature range manually.

Modern thermostats, however, do much more than this. Not only can you time various settings, you can even purchase a smart thermostat that will learn your habits and conserve energy for you. Today’s thermostats have touchscreen controls, lighted LEDs and several other features, including those that can be controlled from any smartphone.

Data Access

Older thermostats can pretty much only tell you two things: Whether or not the system is on, and what the temperature is. Modern models, on the other hand, give you a wealth of additional information, such as indicators if problems take place, alerts if your system is in need of an update or repair, and even reminders on simple tasks like replacing your HVAC filter on a regular basis.

For more on the numerous benefits of upgrading your thermostat, or to learn about any of our heating and air services, speak to the staff at FLAME Heating & Cooling.