Fall in Indiana typically brings mild but changeable weather that requires cooling on some days, and heating on others. These weather fluctuations can make it challenging to keep your home comfortable and your energy bills under control. Here’s how to use your fall HVAC settings to take advantage of milder temperatures, without sacrificing comfort and energy efficiency.
Avoid Shutting Down the System Completely
If anyone in your household suffers from allergies or respiratory conditions, you want to avoid shutting down your HVAC completely in the fall, especially if the system has a dedicated air cleaner. Instead, put the system on “fan only” or the fan in the “on” position. This will keep air circulating through the filter to help maintain good air quality during periods when you don’t need heating or cooling.
Make the Switch Over to Heating
It can be tempting to follow the changing fall temperatures and alternate between cooling and heating, but repeatedly switching modes makes it hard to save energy, and can even increase your energy bills. Instead, make a decision about when to switch over to heating and stick with it. To avoid overheating the house on warmer days, program your thermostat for a lower temperature only at night, and set a higher-than-usual daytime set-point so the furnace doesn’t kick in.
Upgrade Your HVAC Controls
If you’ve been considering investing in a smart thermostat, now’s the ideal time to get your HVAC pro’s advice about the best model for your needs, and take the plunge into new technology. With an intelligent control installed, you’ll have the scheduling capabilities of a regular programmable thermostat, plus the ability to alternate between heating and cooling automatically to compensate for changeable fall weather. Simply choose “heating and cooling” mode, then set parameters to cool above a certain temperature, and heat below your chosen threshold. A smart control can also monitor the weather for you, and learn your usage habits over time, then make adjustments to your HVAC system intuitively.
For personalized advice about optimizing fall HVAC settings in your Indianapolis home, contact us at Mowery Heating, Cooling and Plumbing.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Brownsburg, Indiana and surrounding areas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).
