With all this extra time we have all been spending at home lately, you may have realized that it is time to upgrade your thermostat. Gentry is here to help! Here are our expert tips for making the upgrade:
Assess your needs
The first step is to assess what your needs are in a thermostat, with your specific home and family in mind. Are you looking to add Wi-Fi connectivity, smart home integration, and/or scheduling capabilities? Does your system currently have multi-speed AC and heat? These are the questions you should answer before looking for the perfect product to match your system and desires.
Don’t go overboard
Once you assess your family’s needs, use that as a guide to select your thermostat. If Wi-Fi is not important to you, then there is no need to spend your money on a wifi enabled thermostat. Some people find that all they want is a basic programmable thermostat. Bigger or more expensive isn’t necessarily better here. Focus on fit.
Read reviews
Every brand has its pros and cons. Reading reviews online can help you narrow down which thermostat is the best fit, and can help answer some of the questions that you may have about the product. This can be especially helpful currently when you might be shopping for a thermostat exclusively online.
Narrow down your choices and read the requirements for that thermostat to make sure it will work in your home. Some require an extra “common” wire that you may not have. You also need to consider whether the Wi-Fi router is close enough to the thermostat location and whether your it will require professional installation to maintain the warranty. Even aesthetic considerations have to be addressed, such as whether it will cover the paint behind the existing thermostat, and whether they have covers available for this purpose if not.
Know your product
Some thermostats like Nexia and Honeywell are programmed by the homeowner or installer and then settings can be manually adjusted as you go. Other thermostats, like the Nest, ask you some basic information and then “learn” your heating and cooling habits over time. You need to be prepared to actively adjust the Nest type thermostats for a period to ensure consistency in the operation.
There are so many excellent thermostat types and products out there right now. Please don’t hesitate to give our friendly professionals at Gentry Air Conditioning a call if you have questions or need any help making your decision.
