Smart Thermostats: Opportunities & Challenges

APPRISE and MaGrann conducted a study of residential thermostat settings and temperature preferences in the Northeast. The study collected data from 239 households about thermostat settings, setbacks, and type of thermostat in the home.  The study documented thermostat setpoints, setback preferences; the penetration of standard programmable and smart thermostats; and use of smart thermostat features.
Based on the research, the study recommended that the greatest setback opportunities for non-elderly households were nighttime in the winter and daytime in the summer.  Specific setpoints and setbacks were recommended with different protocols for elderly households.
Based on this study and previous experience, we recommend always providing the opportunity for a resident interview in combination with the installation of a new thermostat so that default settings can be modified accordingly.  Similarly, providing the opportunity for “live” training empowers residents to modify default settings with an understanding of the energy and comfort implications.
Smart thermostats represent a good opportunity for energy savings based on a number of factors evident from this survey:

Low existing penetration rate;

Many households still do not practice thermostat setbacks;

Of the households practicing setbacks, most are doing so manually.

The presentation will review important new data on temperature setting preferences.