On vacation, thermostat temp?

[CGDoig]

Gone for 9 days. I've heard there's no real gain from some and from others there is. What do you usually do of leaving for a week or two in winter?

[stefan]

Re: On vacation, thermostat temp?

I drop furnace to about 64F and put hot water tank on vacation setting - mine says vacation... I assume lowest setting on others. Defiantly see a difference on the bill if gone for 1.5 to 2 weeks. Only takes a second... certainly won't hurt, even if no significant difference is noticed. Recovery time on gas heat is so fast that there is not a lot of downside to turning stuff down.

[bart]

Re: On vacation, thermostat temp?

get a nest.com got one recently its amazing

but i would set it to something low like 10

[Jester B]

Re: On vacation, thermostat temp?

Make sure somebody checks your place every day or two. If you do have a leak/flood and nobody has been checking on your place, your insurance may not cover the damage.

[Tuna]

Re: On vacation, thermostat temp?

Make sure somebody checks your place every day or two. If you do have a leak/flood and nobody has been checking on your place, your insurance may not cover the damage.

I've heard this too, or if it freezes up because furnace quits.

I think next time I go away for a while I'll get a wifi enabled thermostat and then check it using an app. There are a few out there. You can get flood switches too.

[stefan]

Re: On vacation, thermostat temp?

Remember that all the battery operated retrofit digital thermostats shut down if batteries die. Replace them once in a while. Need it or not.

I put a second thermostat on my fireplace and set it really low as a backup in case something happens with the furnace. I had the pilot fail last year right after getting back from Xmas break.

[Hardy_Boy]

Re: On vacation, thermostat temp?

I turn my thermostat down to 16 or so. I also shut off the main water valve in my basement and drain the pipes. Turn my water tank to vacation aswell. I noticed a difference last year when we were gone for a month my enmax bill was about 150 cheaper!!!

[Benjamin]

Re: On vacation, thermostat temp?

Set the temp on both thermostats to 16'c, shut the water off and drain the entire house as well. I have an on demand hot water system though, so I can make sure nothing is able to freeze in case. Fireplace has a small thermostat that will kick things in if it gets too cold though, ie something happens to the furnace.

In terms of thermostats, here is the three top ones right now

Nest
Ecobee
Honeywell Prestiege 2.0

I just built a new house and decided on the Honeywell one as I found it to best fit me and my applications. Also came with a remote that I could stick in my sons room that is over the garage that allows me to read and keep the temp in his room from getting too cold.

Set everything lower and enjoy paying very little on for gas and electricity, although you then notice all the stupid fee's you pay and how little the actual gas/electricity costs.

[RONDAL]

Re: On vacation, thermostat temp?

nest is overpriced new toy, there's far better things on the mkt available for less

[Canadian Turbo]

Re: On vacation, thermostat temp?

What are you guys paying for natural gas at the moment, just dealing with my last bill here and thankfully it is not that cold as the rates here are pretty damn high!

[dwvw]

Re: On vacation, thermostat temp?

My last bill for gas was $97. I have about 4K sq feet total, built in the 70's. I haven't left for more than 4-5 days total in the winter so I just turn the thermostat down about 15 degrees.

[stefan]

Re: On vacation, thermostat temp?

Gas here is cheap. I payed 61$ for mid Nov to mid Dec, but 29$ of that is service charges... the price of gas is only half of it.

[witchcraftz]

Re: On vacation, thermostat temp?

You should close off your water at the main valve outside your house. And as other said drain your water too. If you are going to be gone for a short time you can always turn down the thermostat or completely turn if off if you don't have any plants or anything which might get damaged by the cold.

I live in a building with 16 apartments, I've turned on the heating once so far this year in Vancouver, heat leak from other apartments usually keeps my place warm enough.

[Canadian Turbo]

Re: On vacation, thermostat temp?

Well my last bill was for a period 83 days, and just the gas charge was £161.56 which is pretty close to $260 Cdn, with no extra charges or tax, just gas usage, I think if my math and conversions are correct we are being charged about $16.42Cdn per GJ, which is pretty high compared with Alberta. Also that time period only had a couple nights below freezing so thankfully it was not too cold and hopefully it will stay that way as seems rates are going up as well! I am not sure how old our place is but I am relatively certain it is at least 70 years old, probably older though, I have a neighbour who has lived in his place for going on 66 years now. The house is only 900 sq ft and only has exposed walls and windows on the front and back with attached neighbours on either side, just not overly efficient I imagine, but rates here are higher for sure

[witchcraftz]

Re: On vacation, thermostat temp?

Well my last bill was for a period 83 days, and just the gas charge was £161.56 which is pretty close to $260 Cdn

In Japan, what I did for the gas oven, hot water, etc heated by gas, I'd keep the shutoff valve off. Then when I needed one of those, I'd light the pilot light, use the gas and shut it off right away after being done. Same with all electrical appliances, use it and unplug it. I substantially reduced my utilities bill doing this.