Saklakova/Getty Images In addition to providing a convenient way to control and automate the temperature in your home, a smart thermostat can save you money. It adapts to your habits, heats and cools the house as efficiently as possible and reduces energy consumption when you’re away from home. This can improve your comfort while reducing your bills. However, not everyone ends up saving. There are some common mistakes you can make when installing a smart thermostat, including placing it in the wrong location. Just like there’s a best place to install your Wi-Fi router, not every room in your home is suitable for a smart thermostat. This is because the temperature of a room varies depending on several different factors, including foot traffic, ventilation, and operation. Even in suitable rooms, there are places you’ll want to avoid. Getting it wrong is a surefire way to increase your energy consumption, which is both unnecessary and costly. According to Consumer Reports, the best place for a smart thermostat is a central location in a frequently used space, like the living room. Your thermostat also needs good Wi-Fi strength and no obstructions that would block the connection or restrict free airflow. It’s also best to install it about four or five feet off the floor – since heat rises and cold air sinks, placing the thermostat too high or too low will give an inaccurate reading. Now that you know the ideal location, let’s go over some places you should avoid and why they’re not suitable for a smart thermostat. Near windows and doors Silas Bubolu/Getty Images As mentioned, your smart thermostat should be in a central location in your home, away from doors and windows. This is because the temperature in these areas is influenced by the outside air, and this fluctuation is bound to result in inaccurate readings since they will not reflect the actual temperature inside your home. As a result, your heating and cooling systems will make unnecessary adjustments and turn off or on even when you don’t want them to, consuming more energy than necessary. Additionally, placing a smart thermostat in a location with constant temperature changes causes wear and tear on your HVAC system, which is an expensive headache to replace. Additionally, avoid installing your thermostat on a part of the wall that receives direct sunlight. The extra heat will disrupt your reading, making the thermostat think the room is hotter than it actually is and lowering the temperature accordingly. For the same reason, smart thermostats should not be placed near heating or cooling sources, such as vents, radiators, and fireplaces. In hallways or unused rooms O2o Créatif/Getty Images You might be tempted to place your smart thermostat somewhere out of the way, like in a hallway, but that’s actually one of the worst possible places to install your smart thermostat. Even though hallways are closer to the center of the house and away from windows, they are generally cooler than the rest of the house. You probably don’t spend much time in the hallway either, so a device placed there won’t record accurate temperature readings in your actual living spaces. Opening and closing doors can also create drafts in hallways, which will cause the thermostat to adjust the temperature more often than necessary. For the same reason, you shouldn’t install a smart thermostat in rooms that remain unoccupied most of the day. It’s important to set your temperature based on the rooms people actually use throughout the day to maximize energy efficiency and comfort. As with hallways, low-traffic rooms will not be representative of the rest of the house, hindering your thermostat’s ability to get an accurate reading. In the kitchen Tulcarion/Getty Images Depending on the layout of your home, the kitchen may seem like an appropriate place for your smart thermostat. But even if you spend a lot of time in this part of the house, you’ll run into the same problems with unnecessary temperature changes, causing inaccurate readings that will increase your energy bills. The kitchen is usually one of the warmest rooms in the house, it gets warmer when you use the oven or stove. Placing the thermostat too close to appliances like toasters or coffee makers can also trick it into thinking that the rest of your home is as hot as your kitchen and needs to be cooled accordingly. Likewise, and perhaps more obviously, your smart thermostat shouldn’t go in a bathroom. Just like the kitchen, the temperature in your bathroom fluctuates, especially when you take a shower. Bathrooms also tend to have poor ventilation and minimal airflow, which will also disrupt your readings. Post navigation Why Some Routers Have Two Networks (And What They Mean)
Saklakova/Getty Images In addition to providing a convenient way to control and automate the temperature in your home, a smart thermostat can save you money. It adapts to your habits, heats and cools the house as efficiently as possible and reduces energy consumption when you’re away from home. This can improve your comfort while reducing your bills. However, not everyone ends up saving. There are some common mistakes you can make when installing a smart thermostat, including placing it in the wrong location. Just like there’s a best place to install your Wi-Fi router, not every room in your home is suitable for a smart thermostat. This is because the temperature of a room varies depending on several different factors, including foot traffic, ventilation, and operation. Even in suitable rooms, there are places you’ll want to avoid. Getting it wrong is a surefire way to increase your energy consumption, which is both unnecessary and costly. According to Consumer Reports, the best place for a smart thermostat is a central location in a frequently used space, like the living room. Your thermostat also needs good Wi-Fi strength and no obstructions that would block the connection or restrict free airflow. It’s also best to install it about four or five feet off the floor – since heat rises and cold air sinks, placing the thermostat too high or too low will give an inaccurate reading. Now that you know the ideal location, let’s go over some places you should avoid and why they’re not suitable for a smart thermostat. Near windows and doors Silas Bubolu/Getty Images As mentioned, your smart thermostat should be in a central location in your home, away from doors and windows. This is because the temperature in these areas is influenced by the outside air, and this fluctuation is bound to result in inaccurate readings since they will not reflect the actual temperature inside your home. As a result, your heating and cooling systems will make unnecessary adjustments and turn off or on even when you don’t want them to, consuming more energy than necessary. Additionally, placing a smart thermostat in a location with constant temperature changes causes wear and tear on your HVAC system, which is an expensive headache to replace. Additionally, avoid installing your thermostat on a part of the wall that receives direct sunlight. The extra heat will disrupt your reading, making the thermostat think the room is hotter than it actually is and lowering the temperature accordingly. For the same reason, smart thermostats should not be placed near heating or cooling sources, such as vents, radiators, and fireplaces. In hallways or unused rooms O2o Créatif/Getty Images You might be tempted to place your smart thermostat somewhere out of the way, like in a hallway, but that’s actually one of the worst possible places to install your smart thermostat. Even though hallways are closer to the center of the house and away from windows, they are generally cooler than the rest of the house. You probably don’t spend much time in the hallway either, so a device placed there won’t record accurate temperature readings in your actual living spaces. Opening and closing doors can also create drafts in hallways, which will cause the thermostat to adjust the temperature more often than necessary. For the same reason, you shouldn’t install a smart thermostat in rooms that remain unoccupied most of the day. It’s important to set your temperature based on the rooms people actually use throughout the day to maximize energy efficiency and comfort. As with hallways, low-traffic rooms will not be representative of the rest of the house, hindering your thermostat’s ability to get an accurate reading. In the kitchen Tulcarion/Getty Images Depending on the layout of your home, the kitchen may seem like an appropriate place for your smart thermostat. But even if you spend a lot of time in this part of the house, you’ll run into the same problems with unnecessary temperature changes, causing inaccurate readings that will increase your energy bills. The kitchen is usually one of the warmest rooms in the house, it gets warmer when you use the oven or stove. Placing the thermostat too close to appliances like toasters or coffee makers can also trick it into thinking that the rest of your home is as hot as your kitchen and needs to be cooled accordingly. Likewise, and perhaps more obviously, your smart thermostat shouldn’t go in a bathroom. Just like the kitchen, the temperature in your bathroom fluctuates, especially when you take a shower. Bathrooms also tend to have poor ventilation and minimal airflow, which will also disrupt your readings.
