From a much-needed vacation or a lengthy trip for work, traveling means making preparations for your HVAC system. You don't need it while you’re on a trip, so you can adjust the temperature as necessary to minimize your energy use. Just the same, you shouldn't just turn it off for the entire duration of your trip.

Instead, it’s best to leave your HVAC system on and just raise or lower depending on whether it's winter or summer. That way you can lower energy costs without having to worry about getting back to an uncomfortable home. We’ll review why you should leave your HVAC system on as well as the most energy-efficient thermostat settings for different times of year.

Here’s Why You Don't Leave Your Thermostat on Hold

While you may be wanting to leave your HVAC system off before a trip, this can end up leading to big problems by the time you get back. This is especially true if the weather will be severely hot or cold while you’re out of town.

As an example, switching the HVAC system off during the summer will sometimes lead to very high humidity. Not only will your home feel gross when you return, but it could have also invited mold/mildew growth or pest infestations.

And over the winter, not using the furnace might lead to pipes icing over or even bursting. It’s an awful feeling to come home from a nice trip only to come across extensive water damage near a broken pipe.

Energy-Efficient Thermostat Settings While at Work

You can optimize the temperature even if you’re coming and going to work. Considering you’re out of the house for 8 hours or more, it doesn’t make sense to keep an empty home at the same temperature you’d usually have. In general, it’s suggested to raise the thermostat by 5 degrees or so. Meaning that if you prefer a comfortable 72 degrees, try raising it to 76-77 while you’re out.

But you can save even more if you're open to further adjusting the temperature. As reported by the Department of Energy, you may save about 10% on your HVAC expenses by raising the temperature by about 7-10 degrees.

Energy-Efficient Thermostat Settings While on Vacation in Summer

If you’re leaving for a lengthier trip in the hottest part of summer, you can make bigger adjustments. This prevents wasting energy while still protecting your home from the problems that come with leaving it without air conditioning. Around 5 degrees is appropriate for short trips while around 10 degrees is worthwhile if you’ll be out of town for 2 weeks or more. If you prefer keeping the house at 72 in the summer, 78-82 can offer beneficial results.

Recommended Thermostat Settings While Away from Home in Winter

To try and find the most energy-efficient thermostat setting for a winter getaway, simply lower it by the same amount you would adjust it in summer. 68 is a frequent winter thermostat setting, so turning it down to 63-58 will prevent ice from forming on pipes while limiting how often your furnace runs.

A Smart Thermostat Can Help: Advantages of a Smart Thermostat

An ideal strategy to optimize your home’s HVAC system while out of the house is with a smart thermostat. This advanced type of programmable thermostat uses intelligent software to monitor your preferred comfort habits. It gradually understands these preferences and makes automatic changes to the schedule for better energy efficiency. And with Wi-Fi compatibility, you can remotely control your heating and cooling with a smart device like a phone or tablet.

Smart thermostats are loaded with features to help you save energy and lower costs. For example, specific models can track electricity prices to boost heating or cooling when prices are lowest. They can also work with high-efficiency, variable-speed equipment to refine how long your HVAC system needs to run. It’s the perfect tool to enhance how you control your comfort system. If you’re considering investing in a smart thermostat, there are different ways you can reduce your costs, effectively getting a smart thermostat for free. The next time you leave for vacation, you can appreciate true peace of mind that your HVAC system won’t cause any trouble while you’re gone.