What to look for when buying a Programmable Thermostat

21stCenturyHippy | Sep 13, 2010 |

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One of the easiest ways to reduce your carbon footprint and save money is to install a programmable thermostat in your home. There are several different models to choose from. This post looks at some of the important things you should consider before buying a programmable thermostat.

Compatibility and Warranty

You must check that the programmable thermostat that you are thinking about buying is compatible with your HVAC system. Often the cheapest programmable thermostats are only compatible with single stage heating and cooling systems. Most people who buy programmable thermostats do a self-installation so it is important to check that good customer service is available so you can contact the maker if you have any problems.

The best programmable thermostats can be installed to run both separate and combined heating and cooling systems. Honeywell programmable thermostats can automatically switch between heating and cooling to exactly regulate room temperature.

Any programmable thermostat you buy should come with a warranty. Some come with a 1-year warranty others with a 5-year warranty. Don't buy a programmable thermostat without a warranty. No warranty indicates the makers have no faith in their product.

Programmable Functions

All good programmable thermostats allow you to program in your heating/cooling requirements for every day of the week. And within each day you can program up to 4 different time periods. '4' is the magic number to properly maximize energy savings, any less and you shouldn't buy the thermostat.

Many good programmable thermostats offer a range of other functions such as vacation mode, weekend mode, override buttons and filter warnings. These are all useful functions.

Lux Programmable Thermostats include a lock out feature to stop children from tampering with your programmed temperature settings. This is a code that must be inputted before any setting can be changed.

Honeywell thermostats can be run from the mains or batteries. Even during a power outage Honeywell thermostats retain your programmed information.

Swing Control

This is a very useful function to have on a programmable thermostat. It allows you to set a temperature range that regulates when the heating/cooling comes on. For people living in temperate climate zones it is not vital but if it is very cold or very hot outside you should consider buying a thermostat with swing control. Unless you set a range of 2 degrees or more the thermostat is going to continually cycle the HVAC system. In other words the air-con, boiler or furnace is going to be turning on and off many times per hour. This constant cycling wears out HVAC systems. Hunter and Lux programmable thermostats offer swing control functions.

These are some of the most important things to look out for when buying a programmable thermostat.