When you press the “hold” button on your thermostat, the current setting will be locked into place and any normal programmable settings will be ignored. So if you know you are going to be home for the day, you can press the hold button in the morning and keep your home comfortable all day long.
Here are a few examples of when starting a hold may be helpful: You want your thermostat to hold a temperature for a little while longer when you're home or away outside of your normal schedule, or have visitors in your home that you want to keep comfortable.
If someone is at home in the daytime, 72° F (22° C) is a good start, but aim for 68° F (20° C). If everyone is away from home in the daytime or you're asleep at night, we feel 66° F (19° C) to 62° F (17° C) is best.
Your house is losing air to the outside all the time, so leaving it on all the time is wasteful if you don't want or need it. Program your thermostat to be as warm as is reasonable for when you don't need it and then cooler at night when you need it more.
By pressing “Hold”, your thermostat will lock in the temperature it's currently at until you change it again. When you are ready for your normal schedule to resume, simply press the “Run” button and return to your typical programming. Convenient, right? Programmable thermostats are a great technological innovation.
Choose "AUTO" for energy savings and "ON" if you want constant air circulation or improved air filtration. Temperatures can soar or plummet depending on the time of year. Throughout the year, it is important to have reliable heating and cooling systems in order to keep your home supplied with cool or warm air.
Then, press the Hold button to maintain the new temperature indefinitely. The word Hold will appear on the screen. Press the Run button if you wish to cancel either override and resume the schedule. The word Hold will disappear and the thermostat will be set to the temperature programmed for the current period.
You can save as much as 10% a year on heating and cooling by simply turning your thermostat back 7°-10°F for 8 hours a day from its normal setting.
What's the recommended thermostat setting for saving money? The higher you set your thermostat in the summer and the lower you set it in the winter, the more money you'll save. That said, setting your air conditioner to 78° F and your heater to 68° F is generally a good compromise.
According to the Department of Energy1, 78° Fahrenheit is the sweet spot for air conditioners to balance energy savings and comfort when people are at home and need cooling. But in reality, this is a question that doesn't have a “one size fits all” answer.
Quick answer: The ideal house temperature is room temperature, which ranges from 68 to 78 degrees F, though this may vary from season to season. In winter, the average room temperature is generally 62 to 68 degrees, whereas in the summer, the average temperature is 72 to 78 degrees.
In general, the ideal room temperature and your home for both efficiency and comfort fall somewhere between 68° and 76°F. What should the average room temperature be in winter? In the winter, you might choose to keep your thermostat set lower around 68° in order to save energy and dollars on your next heating bill.
The World Health Organization recommends keeping indoor temperatures between 64 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit for healthy people. The minimum temperature should be kept above 68 degrees Fahrenheit to protect the very young, the elderly, or people with health problems. Watch out for signs of hypothermia.
Energy.gov suggests that 68 degrees is a good room temperature while you're awake at home but recommends lowering it while you're asleep or away. Lowering your thermostat 7-10 degrees for eight hours a day can reduce your annual heating expenses by as much as 10 percent.
AUTO means that the fan turns on automatically only when your system is heating or cooling air. Once the thermostat reaches the desired temperature, the entire system shuts off until the next cycle. ON means that the fan is constantly on and blowing air when your HVAC system is not heating or cooling air.
But as it turns out, the only real pro to keeping your thermostat one temperature is convenience. Sure, when you're away on vacation or gone for the weekend, the consistent temperature is efficient, but when you're at home, there are really no additional benefits.
Adjust the thermostat while you're away to a higher setting. Installing a smart thermostat will make adjusting the indoor temperature even easier. Schedule the setting to increase by seven to 10 degrees while you're at work or away for the day.
Every season has an ideal thermostat temperature and for summer the U.S. Department of Energy suggests that when home, 78 degrees is the sweet spot between staying cool and keeping your energy bill low. Give your air conditioner and energy bill a break by setting your thermostat to 88 degrees when away.
The best room temperature for sleep is approximately 65 degrees Fahrenheit (18.3 degrees Celsius). This may vary by a few degrees from person to person, but most doctors recommend keeping the thermostat set between 65 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit (15.6 to 20 degrees Celsius) for the most comfortable sleep.
The reality is that frequent switching on and off actually uses more energy than just leaving your heater on and can end up costing you more in energy bills. The reason why is that modern furnaces have automatic settings meant to optimize heating efficiency.
The best thermostat settings for energy savings
However, generally speaking, in the winter, you can set your thermostat to 68° while awake and lower it when you're asleep or away from home. In the summer, set the thermostat to 78° when you are at home and higher when you are away.
Lower the Thermostat
According to the Department of Energy, turning down the thermostat by 7 to 10 degrees for up to 8 hours can help you save up to 10% on your annual energy bill. 6 Also, turn the heating down to the lowest bearable level at night, while you're out at work, or when you're on vacation.
The best way to save money is by combining both. The “run” feature lets you preset the temperature when you're not home to prevent wasting money on cooling or heating an empty home. Meanwhile, the “hold” button lets you change the room's temperature without changing your energy-saving, preset schedule.
The “HOLD” button will lock your current programmed settings and keep your thermostat at the temperature you've keyed in. Whatever your preferred settings are, keep in mind that your thermostat is more efficient when you increase the temperature instead of completely shutting down the air conditioning system.
These are temporary holds and permanent holds. A temporary hold will keep the HVAC system set to the held temperature for a temporary period of time of less than 12 hours or until the hold is cancelled. A permanent hold will keep the HVAC system set to the held temperature permanently, until the hold is cancelled.