How to Maximize Comfort with a Thermostat | Ask This Old House

Ask This Old House plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey and home technology expert Ross Trethewey discuss improvements to thermostats and how they contribute to comfort in a home.

Cost: $200 and up

Shopping List:

Steps:
1. Richard and Ross emphasize that the thermostat temperature is just one measurement in the category of comfort. In their field, they work to ensure that the environment is comfortable based on the following data points:
a. Temperature – is the space warm or cool enough
b. Humidity – is there too much (or not enough) moisture in the air
c. Air Speed – is the general air flow of the house causing the occupants to feel colder than they should?
d. Mean radiant temperature – are there surfaces in the room (like windows, floor tiles, etc.) that are different from the occupants’ body temperatures that are making them feel warmer or colder?
2. Modern thermostats, when combined with smarter furnaces or boilers, can account for more of these factors to make the home more comfortable.

Resources:
While Richard and Ross emphasize that temperature is just one measure of comfort in a home, they also point out that innovations in new thermostats are allowing room temperatures to be more precise and more effective than in the past.

About Ask This Old House TV:
Homeowners have a virtual truckload of questions for us on smaller projects, and we're ready to answer. Ask This Old House solves the steady stream of home improvement problems faced by our viewers—and we make house calls! Ask This Old House features some familiar faces from This Old House, including Kevin O'Connor, general contractor Tom Silva, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey, and landscape contractor Roger Cook.

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How to Maximize Comfort with a Thermostat | Ask This Old House

[XzTS-Roostro]

Almost all of the gals at my high school had the logic of, "adjust the thermostat by five degrees Fahrenheit, and it'll heat/cool faster"
My 10th grade geometry teacher had to tell them that wasn't the case, at all, and even I knew that for awhile.

[bobbg]

Perfect, I just watched this.

Ok my house was built in 1992, my hvac system was changed in 2013. My heating bills in the winter for a cold month cost us 450.00 dollars for one month around 2007- 2008 a year we had a cold snap.
No humidity heat at 74dgr f the house never kept warm.
In 2021 jan feb months we had colder temptures for a longer period of time, my gas bill was 163.00 for the month of February this newer hvac system is
Seer 16. 97% efficient heat i had the heat set to 76 dgr and ran a humidifier the whole time this system pulls in outside air to make combustion.
Even a few year old system can be a big upgrade and cost savings to replace.

I wont get into what we paid becuse your home isn't the same size, or geographic location and construction simply taping all the joints helps but the biggest improvement was a newer energy efficient system
This system has paid for itself the first year and almost every year afterwards
And its not even the best money could have bought, if I had it to do over I would opt for a 2 stage compressor, but celing fans help keep you cool the ACs job is to dump heat outside.
On a second note I pay to have this serviced every year it worth it to keep it working at peak efficiency.
However its somthing I could diy its still better to let the pros do it.

[TheAirOfAuthority]

Agreed humidity is key for comfort. Thanks for the conversation about this. This is great information for homeowners. We also think education on your heating and cooling system is important to be able to keep your house comfortable and even stay healthier.

[jeffreyrichardson]

Humidifiers come in handy when burning wood in a Jotul'.

[johnroberts]

Hi TOH, Kevin, Richard, Ross, thanks for showing us what temperature to keep our thermostat at to help save energy & money ! 👍😃🔨🔩🔧

[billb.]

In a moment of rebellion I went down to Ace Hardware and picked up 3 of the old school, Honeywell dial thermostats and ripped out the programmable ones that came with my house. They work flawlessly and I don’t need a PHD to figure them out.

[bobloveswhiskey]

When will you guys do a video on laminate vinyl flooring?

[Mihogan]

False. My 45 year old boiler is still 70% efficient. To upgrade would cost over $10k. The savings to upgrade to a 95% efficient boiler would be approximately $400/year. This would take me 25 years to break even!

[Furiends]

Just for some obvious context. It's far better to have a home thats much better insulated along with temperature and humidity control and fresh air circulation and then you don't micromanage your thermostat you just leave it at the settings you want because your house can retain the temperature for a day or two there's no need to shutoff the system while at work.
However most actual homes have ridiculously awful standby loss. Funny enough a big part of that is just the duct work itself if its placed in an attic its radiating all that heat in then it moves through the air back into the house. In other cases people just don't have good insulation or their windows are leaky, etc. But the idea of letting your entire house heat cycle to save money just seems backwards.

[بوفارسبونورا-صه]

We know hydronic system, but, what is "four stair system" ? !

[xoxooxox]

I just want the utility companies to stop gouging us.

[terrycavender]

Well, But, honestly, this could have been longer, with more practical details, and less about the expensive stuff most of us can't afford.

[hsvr]

Poor guy on the right kept trying to get a word in to feel relevant the whole video, he was itching towards the end

[ForwardGuidance]

yes, turn yet another human tracking machine on try talking about a product you don't want near an amazon echo and you'll see it when you are on the internet.

[Engineer]

Do people really need a book of information on how to set your thermostat comfortably? If it’s too hot you decrease the temperature, if it’s too cold you raise the temperature. When you know what temperature you want at what time, you program it. How can people get through life if they are too dumb to understand this without explanation. They would be nearing the intelligence of my cats.

[carminesilverado]

I don't want any more electronics

[jeffreyjohn]

I'll bet the closet auger hanging on the wall of their shop stinks

[augustreil]

No thanks, I'll keep my old Honeywell Thermostat and my asbestos covered furnace, it's been working flawless for 50 yrs. There isn't a furnace out there that will last that long. Don't need or want another electronic thing in my house to track me or go bad.