You might not like the government’s new suggestions for your thermostat settings

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The U.S. government-backed energy efficiency program Energy Star has some new recommendations out for where you should set your home thermostat, and some people think they’re out of their minds.

Here’s are the Energy Star recommended temperatures for your home thermostat

As you can see from the chart below, the recommended temperatures could be considered a good bit out of line with what most people consider “comfortable.”

Energy Star Thermostat Setting Recommendations
Energy Star

If you’re doing the math along with us, you’ll notice that when you’re cooling the recommended setting 78 degrees when you’re home in the morning and evening, 85 degrees when you’re away during the day and 82 degrees when you’re tucking into bed at night.

On the flip side, the heating suggestions are 70 degrees in the morning and evening and 62 degrees when you’re away and overnight.

Previous guidance from the U.S. Department of Energy was to keep your home at 78 degrees when you were home during the warmer months and 68 degrees when it was cooler outside.

Many people found the new Energy Star guidelines laughable:

https://twitter.com/Dana_greiner/status/1163846824953864197

Meanwhile, for their part, Energy Star says that homeowners can save about $180 a year on energy costs by installing programmable thermostats and maintaining the recommended settings.

What setting do you keep your thermostat on during the summer? Let us know in the comments below!

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