A lot of homeowners worry about the maintenance and upkeep of their furnaces and air conditioning systems but forget that regular maintenance of their thermostats is part of this important process.
Whether it’s winter or summer, a malfunctioning or non-functioning thermostat can cause you a lot of headaches:
- Inaccurate temperature readings
- Low battery warning failure
- Malfunctioning furnace, air conditioner or total HVAC system
- Poor interior temperature control
- Lighting and energy efficiency issues
What Exactly Does a Thermostat Do and How Does it Work?
You may not understand all of the jobs that your thermostat performs and how important it is to the overall functioning of your HVAC system. However, your thermostat serves a very important function in keeping you comfortable in your home and ensuring your HVAC system is performing at its best.
Thermostats use something called bimetals (for older models) or thermistors in order to sense and analyze the surrounding air that comes from your HVAC system’s vents. Thermostats rely on random air currents passing through to determine what temperature your home or room is currently at. It compares this temperature with room temperature and will make adjustments in order to provide you with air at a temperature of your choosing.
For example, if you set your thermostat at 70 degrees and your thermostat senses that the air in your home is at 65 degrees, it will continuously run your HVAC system until it reaches 70 degrees. This is how thermostats work to get your home at your desired temperature. All thermostats used in HVAC systems work this way, regardless of the type of thermostat that your system uses. Another function of your thermostat is acting as an on/off switch and also acts as the main control of your HVAC system. If your thermostat fails to work, it could throw off your whole HVAC system causing it not to heat or cool your home properly.
The Cost of a Bad Thermostat
These types of headaches during the height of a heating or cooling season can do more than lead to a costly emergency thermostat repair job. They can also result in a wide range of unexpected costs related to:
Appliances: If local options are booked and you can’t receive fast professional emergency thermostat repair service, you might find yourself purchasing other types of equipment to provide the temperature control you need during the wait, such as portable electric heaters or air conditioners.
Utilities: Any kind of increased electrical use during even a temporary switch to portable heating and cooling systems is going to result in a higher electric bill.
Hotel Stay: During professional peak repair periods before drastic temperature changes and holidays, you might be stuck unable to use your system for several days.
As a result, you might need to live temporarily out of a hotel – especially if you or someone you love is extremely sensitive to temperature changes or takes one or more medicines that require living and sleeping in an environment that isn’t too cold or hot.
Illnesses: A cold building can increase pain and other symptoms associated with a variety of conditions like arthritis and Raynaud’s Disease. It can also make some people, especially the ill and the elderly, more susceptible to getting sick.
A building that is too warm is the perfect breeding ground for microorganisms. Additionally, you or someone you love can experience symptoms related to dehydration, diarrhea or heat strokes because of high heat exposure.
Treatments: Any type of illness brought on by poor interior temperature control can quickly lead to a doctor’s office or ER visit and unexpected expenses related to treatment co-payments, prescription drugs and potentially an overnight or longer hospital stay.
Types of Thermostats
Your home’s thermostat is the brain that tells the temperature control body of your house, the individual furnace, air conditioner or total HVAC system, how to behave at any given moment. Temperature control thermostats are available in several designs. The most common models are:
Non-Programmable: The oldest models for these thermostats require that you twist a dial or slide a lever until you align an arrow or a red mark with a temperature shown on the surface.
Newer models have digital displays and allow you to select “Heat” or “Cold” and then press a button up or down to select a temperature. You must manually adjust the temperature every time you want it to change.
Programmable: These thermostats feature digital displays, but they also provide basic or complex programming options depending on the design. You press buttons or use a touchscreen to select the temperature.
With an incredibly basic programmable thermostat design, you are in charge of the automatic heating and cooling control schedule setup. With an intricate design, you control other systems in your home as well, including systems related to lighting, water and security.
A sophisticated smart home programmable thermostat uses sensors with automatic and/or remote control options. Newer models are even self-learning: They use sensors and your manual inputs to learn your habits and automatically schedule future heating and cooling changes based on the data.
Five Signs of Thermostat Malfunction
No matter the type of thermostat that’s installed in your home, all thermostats inevitably malfunction because of natural wear and tear, age and/or defects. The following are the best methods for determining if a thermostat is malfunctioning:
1. Display Problems: If you’re using a digital display thermostat, you can quickly tell that something is wrong if the information shown on the screen looks faded or if the display is missing data.
Although dying and dead batteries can cause fading, a thermostat can experience fading and missing data for other more serious reasons.
2. Incorrect Temperature: You might also have a thermostat problem if the room or building temperature does not match the thermostat setting. Although a bad main unit can cause this problem, a problem with the furnace or air conditioner can also cause temperature discrepancies.
Also, a thermostat can work correctly and display the wrong temperature if it was installed too close to a source of heat or cold air.
3. Strange Behavior: A furnace, air conditioner or total HVAC system that kicks on or off too much or too little when compared to optimal performance events in the past is another sign that your home might have a bad thermostat.
4. Thermostat Wiring: Any type of wiring problems, such as loose or corroded wiring, can cause a thermostat and/or entire system to malfunction.
5. Manual Activation: If you can’t turn on the heat or air conditioning with the thermostat, but you can turn either on manually without using it, then the thermostat is likely malfunctioning.
These are only a few signs of a thermostat problem. Although many homeowners perform their own evaluations and repairs, it’s best to hire a certified professional technician to inspect and maintain the system on a regular basis as a preventative measure.
A professional heating, ventilation, and air conditioning repair technician is specially trained to recognize all of the signs and provide the fastest, most efficient, cost-effective solutions. You can’t stop an inevitable thermostat breakdown since there are many types of events that you can’t anticipate, such as bad batteries and power surges.
That said, you can decrease the number of thermostat incidents through regular maintenance.
For more information or to schedule an appointment, call Warhold Plumbing, Heating, and Air Conditioning in Greensburg, PA at (724) 382- 4844 today!
