The dog days of summer are upon us and next will be winter’s chill. Did you know upwards of 60% of the typical home’s utility bills go to the central air conditioner and heater? A Honeywell 7-day programmable thermostat will let you squeeze that nickel until the buffalo burps!

Honeywell is the Industry Leader

Standard disclaimer: No, I’m not affiliated with Honeywell; I simply mention them because they set the standard in the thermostat industry. Going with the big dogs means you’ll get better tech support if you need it.

How a 7-Day Programmable Digital Thermostat will Lower Your Electric Bill

The whole idea is to program your cooling and heating system for a 7-day period. During the week when the family’s gone, set it to an energy-saving temperature. If you flex on Friday you might comfortize the temperature earlier.

On the weekend of course, you'll have more specialized settings. The programming is menu-driven so setting it up is a snap. The beauty of this is that it takes one more hassle out of your busy schedule.

Set this gizmo once and only override it when you need to.

Research Before You Shop

Honeywell makes a variety of models. Certain models are in different price ranges and some work with different kinds of central air conditioner systems. For example, is your system single or multi-stage heating and cooling?

A heat pump with or without auxiliary heat? Electric baseboard heat? You'll need to know these things to get just the right model.

Installing Your New Digital Thermostat

How you install your new digital thermostat depends on the model and the one you're replacing. In many cases, if your current one isn't an absolute antique, it’s simply a case of removing and reattaching anywhere from two to ten wires.

How Much will This Energy Saving Set Me Back?

For a touch-screen programmable thermostat, you can get into the game for around $120 USD. Of course, you can go much higher. It just depends on which features you want. Or, you can pay half that but you'll lose the 7-day feature. Your choice.