Asked on: July 5, 2013 by Question via Facebook Is it more economical to turn the A/C up during the day and down at night, or leave it at the same temperature all day? The urban myth that you should leave your thermostat at the same temperature all the time has been around for decades. The truth is, it takes a lot of energy for your air conditioner to run all day, maintaining an inside temperature that’s significantly lower than the outside temperature. On the other hand, if you set your thermostat higher in the morning, the unit will run less during the day, saving you money on your FPL bill. Even if the air conditioner has to catch up when you bring the temperature back down later, it is still more economical to keep your thermostat set higher during the day. By the same logic, if you are in the habit of lowering the thermostat before bedtime because you prefer a cooler room while you sleep, your cooling costs increase by up to 5% for every degree you lower the temperature!

To use less air conditioning at night, turn on ceiling fans – they make you feel cooler even though they aren’t technically cooling the house. Of course, when heating in winter, lowering the thermostat setting saves you money because your heater runs less. Thermostat Doesn’t Control Temp Many problems with a heating or cooling system can be traced back to the thermostat. In some cases, the thermostat is out of adjustment. Other times its batteries are dead. Obviously, replacing batteries or making a simple adjustment are easy solutions. If your electronic thermostat is acting up and you’re sure it’s programmed properly, replace the batteries. With most types, you pull the thermostat’s body straight out from its baseplate and find the batteries mounted to the back side of the body. But check your owner’s manual…if your thermostat isn’t built this way, you’ll break it! If these steps don’t do the trick and your thermostat is outdated, it may be more affordable and sensible to replace it.

Then, for information on how to install it, see . When your thermostat says one temperature and you know the room is another, it may be dirty, tilted on the wall, or located where it can’t get a proper reading. 1Turn the power off to the heating system. 2Remove the thermostat’s cover. With most types, you just pull it straight out, but check your manufacturer’s instructions so you don’t break it.best gas hvac system 3Use a soft brush or vacuum with a brush attachment to gently and carefully remove dust and dirt. red dot ac parts cross referenceIf the thermostat has two parallel metal strips, wipe them off with a soft cloth.unit consumption of 2 ton acYou can try to remove corrosion with electronic contact cleaner.

If it’s an outdated thermostat, consider replacing it with a newer model. 5If you have a mechanical (not electronic/ programmable) thermostat, be sure it is mounted level on the wall. Check it with a small torpedo level. 6A thermostat should be mounted about 5 feet from the floor, located where it can easily sense an air sample that is consistent with room temperatures. This means it should not be put in a corner, behind a door, in a closet, near a window or door, or near a heat source. If it is mounted in one of these spots, consider relocating it. This involves rerouting wires so unless you’re handy with this sort of thing it’s probably better to hire an electrical contractor or heating technician to do the work. 7If none of these steps works, replace the thermostat. If your gas- or oil-burning furnace cycles on and off too frequently or there are major swings in room temperature before the furnace goes on, the thermostat may just need a simple adjustment. To adjust the thermostat:

1Remove the thermostat’s cover. For a mechanical thermostat with a mercury switch (a small vial filled with mercury), first use a small torpedo level to make sure the thermostat is mounted level on the wall. If it isn’t level, it won’t measure temperatures properly. 2Adjust the heat anticipator. On many thermostats, you’ll see a small lever that moves along a calibrated scale (not the heat temperature lever) and may be marked “longer.” This is the heat-anticipator adjustment. Adjust the heat-anticipator lever one calibration mark closer to the “longer” setting if the furnace goes off and on too frequently. If the furnace allows room temperature to drop too low or rise too high before the furnace goes on or off, move the lever one mark away. 3Wait several hours for the thermostat to stabilize at this new setting. 4Repeat the adjustment if necessary. 5If making these adjustments doesn’t solve the problem, consider replacing your thermostat. Featured Resource: Find Local Thermostat Pros

For anyone reading this page who thinks they’re about to get some really technical information on HVAC systems and their compatibility with various thermostats, I’m sorry to disappoint you. I don’t work in this industry, and I certainly don’t have the sort of knowledge a technician does. However, since I have done my research regarding thermostats, I thought it would be prudent to at least pass on some of the information I’ve come across that’s really helped me. You see I thought it would be easy to find a model of thermostat to suit my needs and the needs of my HVAC system, however it transpires that the very first thing you must do is check what type of heating or cooling you have in your home. Of course, most thermostats will work with different systems, but you just might end up with a thermostat that won’t work with your system at all, or if it does you might cause damage to your equipment and that will only lead to an expensive repair job. So, there are various steps you need to take before you even start to think about the sorts of features you would like with a thermostat.

This is what makes finding the right thermostat a bit of a headache, especially if you don’t have any technical experience. The main reason is there are a wide range of different systems on the market and this will determine what type of thermostat you can have. For instance, you may have a gas furnace, electric baseboard, oil fired with a boiler or a heat pump based system (to name but a few). This may all sound very complicated but once you know what type of system you have there are only three different thermostats to choose from. Again you might be thinking there is “no light at the end of the tunnel” but if you know a few of the basic terms you’re likely to come across, it won’t be that difficult to determine which type of thermostat you need. You will more than likely come across the terms “one stage” and two stage” often, but just to help you a little further I’ve added the information below. There are ways you can check what both the type of system you have and how many stages it is, but this usually involves taking a look inside your current thermostat.

This will give you the information you need but since this will also involve you having to deal with a power source to your system, if you’re not sure the best thing to do is ask a technician to help. A side note also worth mentioning here is that If you are confident enough to check the system you have, it’s pretty easy to confirm what number of stages you have. You will have to look inside your current thermostat, and this is where you will more than likely be met with a series of numbers and letters. For systems that have more than one stage for cooling look out for wires that are attached to an “y1” and “y2” terminals. The same applies to a two stage furnace. If you have this, there will be wires attached to the “w1” and “w2” terminals. You may also want to check the information I have added on my , the videos all include wiring info so I’m sure this will help make you more confident. If you currently have a low voltage system, you can use most (if not all) of the systems I have reviewed on my site.