OutHouse
Lifer
- Jun 5, 2000
- 36,410
- 616
- 126
now all you need (and me) is zone heating/cooling. its where ducts in each room have luevers and sensors to control the heating/cooling for that room only.
say in the summer a room on the west side of the house is hotter than a room on the east side, the A/C will kick on and the system will close all the vents in the rooms that do not need cooling but open the room(s) that do need cooling. saves money from not heating/cooling the entire house. but those systems are expensive but in the long run i can see how they can a boat load of cash.
say in the summer a room on the west side of the house is hotter than a room on the east side, the A/C will kick on and the system will close all the vents in the rooms that do not need cooling but open the room(s) that do need cooling. saves money from not heating/cooling the entire house. but those systems are expensive but in the long run i can see how they can a boat load of cash.
Kelemvor
Lifer
- May 23, 2002
- 16,928
- 8
- 81
THe more time it spends in the lower setting the more money you save. You should set it to drop down an hour or so before you go to bed. Unless you live in the drafties house around, your house should still be at a decent temperature until you go to bed.
Mine goes down at 9:30 and I'm in bed around 10:30 most nights and the temperature inside is the same or maybe 1 degree less.
Mine goes down at 9:30 and I'm in bed around 10:30 most nights and the temperature inside is the same or maybe 1 degree less.
Yeah, I think I'm going to wind it back from 11:45 to 10. I also need to change Thursday so that it comes on later since that's when I normally go out to happy hour.
mine's set to go 1 degree cooler when we go to bed. it used to go cooler when i went to work, but i work at home now... taking care of the baby
That's it? I'd imagine the energy savings to be negligible.
Mine goes to 70 when I get home, 62 when I go to bed, 70 when I wake up, and then 62 while I'm at work. It goes to 60 when I put it on "special day/long term override mode" for weekends away or vacations.
Nope. I just got the house in June, then added R38 in the whole attic, did this thermostat, and then brand new Anderson storm doors are coming in about a week or so....
We used less gas in the winter after installing them. BUT like acemcmac we also did soem other upgrades. Like the foam behind the wall outlets, a little more insualtion in some low spots of the atitic, etc...
So yea I am 100% for them. That and they can get had for $25-40 very easy so I don't know whay they are not installed when houses are upgraded/built now.
dullard
Elite Member
- May 21, 2001
- 25,923
- 4,514
- 126
Many homes use heat pumps. Heat pumps = ~80% of the heating/air conditioning is free and the remaining 20% is electricity that you supply. The key with heat pumps though is that they can't quickly change temperatures, especially in extreme weather. If you have a very cold day and have your thermostat suddenly change from 62°F to 72°F, the heat pump can't handle that change. So, emergency heat will kick on. You now pay for nearly 100% of the heating cost. Your heat bill went up by a factor of 5.
Conclusion: heat pumps + adjustable thermostats may INCREASE heating costs. It can be cheaper and much more comfortable to keep the temperature constant all day long in that situation.
Also, you have to consider thermal expansion. The wide temperature changes can damage expensive furnature/keepsakes.
That said, I have a programmable thermostat and love it (no heat pump). My gas bills in 2004/2005 without much use of the programmable thermostat was $682 total. In 2005/2006 winter season where I used it heavilly was $611 total. Note: the price of gas soared in that last season. So, I saved money even with higher energy prices. In summer, I went from $438 total to $311 total. Also, note, I'm rarely at home, so my benefit is bigger than what many other people would see.
How long did it take to put that in? We don't have a programable thermostat, but I think I'd like to get one. The heating and air guys always charge waaaaay too much though so I'd like to do it myself.
[edit] Can't freaking correctly type what I'm thinking.
[edit] Can't freaking correctly type what I'm thinking.
Under ten minutes. It was the fastest and easiest home improvement project I've ever done, tied with changing a two pole light switch for a two pole led backlit light switch.
When you take off the thermostat cover, there are a few screws you undo to get it off. It's all prying from there. Be careful not to short anything. Note the letters on the contacts on the old thermostat. Match them to the contacts on the new thermostat. Don't rely on wire colors. Done.
It's pretty easy to put in a programmable thermo, shouldnt take you more than 10 mins, its like 2 wires.
More if you have AC. More if you have sensors to tell you when you need a new fan filter. There were like 12 leads on mine. I only used two since I have an NG/baseboard radiator setup. There were also a few jumpers "heat pump, T/F?" "12/24 hr mode", etc.
We recently had zones put into our heating and air system and paid a pretty penny for it, but the cheap bastards put in a non-programable thermostat in the new zone. Our original thermostat is also non-programable.
I have radiators. When you have radiators, you can't exactly put levers in the ducts because there are no ducts. Sorry for not clarifying. Believe me, in a three story house, I'd be all over that if I could...
I put in a Totaline P374-1100 into my home. Large clear display and lots of accessories you can add on.
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