5 Smart Thermostat Programming Ideas for Iowa City, IA, Residents

Every degree counts when it comes to your comfort—and your power bill. That’s why more Iowa City, IA, homeowners use smart thermostats to maximize their home comfort. These devices do more than make it easier to control your HVAC—they use intelligent temperature scheduling and connectivity to align with your daily activities.

With these smart thermostat programming tips from the experts at Kelly Heating & Air Conditioning, you can maintain your preferred temperature while minimizing unnecessary energy use. Whether you're trying to reduce your home's utility bills or enjoy a more efficient home, smart home climate control is the way to go. In this blog, we’ll cover simple smart thermostat strategies. With this smart thermostat programming guide, you can make your HVAC system deliver comfort with less effort.

1. Change the Temperature According to Your Daily Routine

Use your smart thermostat settings to change the temperature according to your normal routine—cooler when you're away, warmer when you're home and perfectly set for sleeping. By automatically shifting the temperature when no one’s home, these schedules minimize wasteful heating or cooling. Some smart thermostats are designed to learn your habits and adjust the temperature automatically.

Taking advantage of smart thermostat settings to change temperatures based on your daily routine ensures comfort on your terms without wasting energy—all while saving money. Plus, it’s easy: you don’t have to manually update settings.

2. Customize Thermostat Settings for Each Season

One of the cost-saving thermostat tips from the team at Kelly Heating & Air Conditioning is to use your smart thermostat to change your home’s temperature according to the season. For instance, during winter, experts say one of the best thermostat settings for home energy efficiency is 68 degrees in the day and slightly lower at night. This method can lower heating bills by as much as 10% each year. That’s different from the best cost-saving temperature when it's hot outside, which is approximately 78 degrees. By modifying your temperature settings based on the seasons, you reduce unnecessary power usage and still stay comfortable.

3. Utilize Away or Eco Modes When You're Gone

Smart or programmable thermostat schedules also gives you access to special modes—such as Away and Eco—when you're not home. Away Mode lowers the temperature while you're gone. Eco Mode also minimizes the temperature and is well-suited to when you'll be gone several days, like vacations. These two settings let you save on power when you’re not home to experience the heating or cooling, but still maintain a minimum temperature to prevent dangerously high or low temperatures.

4. Control Temperature in Individual Rooms or Areas with Zoning Features

Some homes have extremely hot or cold rooms. A typical example is a second floor that’s always hotter than the ground level. Installing an HVAC zoning system separates your home into multiple areas, allowing you to individually manage temperatures in different parts or levels of your home. Smart thermostats allow you to set and adjust temperatures by zone, so you can always stay comfortable.

5. Use HVAC Monitoring Features for Maximum Savings

One of the advantages of smart thermostats is they have the capability to sync with connected HVAC systems. Beyond just controlling your heating and cooling system, the WiFi or Bluetooth connection lets your smart thermostat receive real-time data from the system itself. This means a home smart thermostat can monitor performance, alert you to AC or furnace repair and can even send a notification to your local HVAC company when it's time for HVAC maintenance or repair.

This lets get prompt furnace or air conditioning repair as soon as your system starts to malfunction. Without this feature, a failing heating and cooling system could deteriorate further and waste energy before you even notice—until the damage is done and your energy bills increase sharply.

Struggling to Set Your Thermostat? Kelly Heating & Air Conditioning Is Here For You

Smart thermostats have many advantages for your comfort and the energy efficiency of your home. At Kelly Heating & Air Conditioning, we love assisting homeowners like you get the best results out of smart thermostats and other smart HVAC technology. If you're interested, we can combine a smart thermostat with furnace or air conditioning installation—helping you get the most out of your HVAC system. Or, we can demonstrate how a smart thermostat and zoned HVAC system can make your upcoming AC or furnace installation that much more cost-effective. We're also happy to give you thermostat efficiency advice and demonstrate what these innovative tools are capable of.

Enjoying more convenient living with smart thermostats begins with a phone call. Set up your appointment with Kelly Heating & Air Conditioning by calling 319-337-3520 today.