March 2, 2023

Does It Make Sense To Upgrade Your Thermostat to a Smart Thermostat?

If you enjoy a comfortable home in St. Louis, then having the right thermostat can make all the difference. Although a basic thermostat can accurately maintain the temperature in your home, newer thermostats offer more features that allow you to take total control over your home’s comfort. The newest category of thermostats, smart thermostats, offer the most features. However, just because something is newer and has more features doesn’t necessarily mean it’s worth your investment. To understand the benefits of smart thermostats, check out this guide from Scott-Lee Heating Company so that you can understand if a smart thermostat is right for your home.

What Is a Smart Thermostat?

Smart thermostats are digital thermostats that have Wi-Fi connectivity. They also have a separate power supply that allows them to have large screens to easily access all of your HVAC system’s settings. Smart thermostats also fall into the larger category of programmable thermostats. However, while all programmable thermostats allow you to specify certain times for your HVAC system to turn off and on, only smart thermostats allow you to access these settings remotely, thanks to their Wi-Fi connectivity. Thanks to these features, smart thermostats offer a variety of benefits.

Newer Design

If your thermostat looks like it belongs in 1975, a smart thermostat will bring a major update to your living space. While you shouldn’t buy a thermostat merely for aesthetics, the modern designs of smart thermostats allow them to pair well with modern and contemporary home decor styles. Plus, different companies offer thermostat designs that are quite varied so that you can find one to easily match your home once you figure out the features you’re looking for. For added utility, some smart thermostats allow you to show pictures on the digital display when you’re not changing the settings on the thermostat. This allows your smart thermostat to blend into your decor even more effectively.

Changing Schedule

In a world where conversations about artificial intelligence dominate the technological landscape, smart thermostats use a form of artificial intelligence, machine learning, in a way that can make your life a lot easier. Many brands of smart thermostats use proximity sensors to detect when you and your family are occupying your home. Over time, the machine-learning capabilities of your smart thermostat will allow it to find patterns in your comings and goings that will enable the thermostat to create an optimized HVAC operating schedule that can help save on your heating and cooling costs. Some brands of smart thermostats can also reduce your HVAC system’s output if the thermostat detects that you haven’t been home for a certain amount of time. So, if you have a changing schedule, upgrading to a smart thermostat is a good idea.

Remote Temperature Sensing

Even if you have a well-insulated home, there are still likely certain rooms that are warmer or cooler than other rooms. While it’s a good idea to address these differences with an energy audit from Scott-Lee Heating Company, another solution is to tackle the problem by using a smart thermostat. Some smart thermostats offer optional add-on temperature sensors. The beauty of these sensors is that you can place them in various rooms in your home away from where your thermostat is located. These sensors will send temperature information to the thermostat so that it can get a more complete picture of the temperature conditions in your home. This will allow your smart thermostat to make better use of your HVAC system’s run cycles so that your entire home stays more comfortable. If you’re tired of hot and cold spots in your home, you should consider upgrading to a smart thermostat.

Control From Your Phone

When you’re away from home, it’s still nice to be able to make sure your home’s mechanical systems are working properly. Fortunately, a smart thermostat allows you to do just that. At Scott-Lee Heating Company, we love this capability of smart thermostats because it helps ensure that you don’t waste energy if you leave home unexpectedly and don’t change the settings on your thermostat. Rather than having to send a friend or family member to your home to change the settings, you can do it all remotely, exactly to your liking. As long as you have an internet connection on your phone, you can change your home’s comfort settings from anywhere in the world. You can also get alerts if your HVAC system has an unexpected problem so that you can react more quickly.

Usage Reports

An exceptionally handy feature of smart thermostats is that they can provide usage reports that allow you to understand how your HVAC system is operating. If you’ve noticed a sudden increase in your utility bills, you may want to upgrade to a smart thermostat so that you can see if your HVAC system is the culprit behind the higher bills. Furthermore, when Scott-Lee Heating Company comes to your home to maintain or repair your system, you can show the technician these reports to help make their time with you more fruitful. Since your HVAC system is responsible for a large percentage of your home’s energy consumption, having access to operating reports can come in very handy.

Usable Interfaces

Programmable thermostats have been around for a long time. In some cases, though, older programmable thermostats can be challenging to program effectively. If you have one of these older thermostats, it can mean that you’ll lose out on the energy-saving benefits that programmable thermostats can offer. Fortunately, when you use a smart thermostat, both the on-device and remote programming capabilities are easy to use and understand. These easy-to-use interfaces allow you to schedule your HVAC system’s operating times more precisely. When you’re able to accurately control your HVAC system, it will lead to improved home comfort and lower energy usage.

Power for Your Smart Thermostat

It’s important to note that most smart thermostats require something called a C-wire to operate correctly. A C-wire provides continuous low-voltage power to your smart thermostat to allow it to maintain its Wi-Fi connection and illuminate its screen. Since older thermostats didn’t require a C-wire, your HVAC system may not currently have a C-wire installed. That’s why it’s important to involve Scott-Lee Heating Company when you’re upgrading your current thermostat to a smart thermostat. Improperly wiring a thermostat can cause your system to run erratically or even cause damage to various system components. With professional installation, though, you can avoid injuring yourself during the installation process and have confidence that your HVAC system will operate correctly.

Cutting Edge HVAC Technology

At Scott-Lee Heating Company, we pride ourselves on staying on the cutting edge of HVAC technology. We want our customers to have great options for home comfort, which is why we install thermostats and repair, install, and maintain air conditioners, furnaces, and geothermal systems. We also perform commercial HVAC maintenance and repair and offer indoor air quality services. With over 40 years of experience, there’s an excellent chance that we’ll be able to handle your home comfort project. We work hard to treat every customer with dignity and respect, which is one big reason why we are rated A+ by the Better Business Bureau and continually receive five-star customer reviews. To learn more about thermostat options for your home, be sure to contact us at Scott-Lee Heating Company today.