Whether it’s a tropical vacation or an extended trip for work, traveling means making plans for your home comfort system. You won’t be using it as long as you’re away, so you can make adjustments as appropriate to conserve your energy use. Just the same, you shouldn't just turn it off for the entire duration of your trip.

In general, it’s better to leave your HVAC system on and just raise or lower depending on the season. That way you can reduce energy costs without worrying about getting back to an uncomfortable home. We’ll explain why you should leave your HVAC system on as well as the ideal thermostat settings for summer and winter.

Here’s Why You Shouldn’t Leave Your Thermostat on Hold

While you might be inclined to leave your HVAC system off before a trip, this could end up causing big problems by the time you get back. This is notably true in case the weather will be severely hot or cold while you’re away from home.

As an example, shutting the HVAC system off during the summer can produce very high humidity. Not only will your home feel muggy and uncomfortable when you have returned, but it may have also stimulated mold/mildew growth or pest infestations.

And during the winter, leaving the furnace off could lead to pipes freezing up or even bursting. It’s never fun to come home from a long trip only to find extensive water damage close to a broken pipe.

Energy-Efficient Thermostat Settings While at Work

You can adjust the temperature even when you're just going to work. Because you’re not home for 8 hours or more, it doesn’t make sense to keep an empty home the same temperature as when you're home. As a general rule, it’s encouraged 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 may save even more if you try further adjustments to the temperature. As stated by the Department of Energy, you may save around 10% on your HVAC spending by increasing the adjustment to 7-10 degrees.

Best Thermostat Settings While on Vacation in Summer

If you leave for an extended trip in the middle of summer, you can make more significant adjustments. This prevents wasting energy while still defending your home from the hassles that come with leaving it un-air conditioned. Around 5 degrees is recommended for shorter trips while closer to 10 degrees is worthwhile if you’ll be away from home for 2 weeks or longer. If you like keeping the house at 72 in the summer, 78-82 can offer the best results.

Best Thermostat Settings While on Vacation in Winter

To figure out the ideal thermostat setting for a winter getaway, just lower the temperature by the same amount you would raise it in summer. 68 is a common winter thermostat setting, so lowering it to 63-58 will protect your plumbing while limiting how long your furnace operates.

A Smart Thermostat Can Help: Advantages of a Smart Thermostat

A great way to manage your home’s HVAC system while out of the house is by investing in a smart thermostat. This special type of programmable thermostat utilizes intelligent software to understand your preferred comfort habits. It gradually understands these preferences and makes automatic adjustments to the schedule for better energy efficiency. And with Wi-Fi connectivity, you can remotely access your HVAC system using a mobile device or tablet.

Smart thermostats are stuffed with features to help you save even more. For instance, specific models can monitor electricity prices to increase heating or cooling when prices are more affordable. They can be used with high-efficiency, variable-speed equipment to fine-tune how long your HVAC system should run. It’s the perfect tool to streamline how you control your comfort system. If you’re considering investing in a smart thermostat, there are different ways you can lower your costs, effectively getting a smart thermostat for free. The next time you are away from home, you can receive true peace of mind that your HVAC system won’t stir up any trouble while you’re away.