Thermostat setback
also: setback · setup · programmable schedule · night setback
Automatically lowering the heating setpoint, or raising the cooling setpoint, when a space is empty or people are asleep, to save energy.
Energy.gov estimates that turning the thermostat back 7–10 °F for 8 hours a day can save as much as 10% a year on heating and cooling, with larger percentage savings in milder climates. Programmable and smart thermostats automate this with schedules, occupancy sensing or location, and recover before people return.
Setback interacts with equipment type. With heat pumps, deep setbacks can trigger recovery on inefficient backup resistance heat and cancel the savings; smaller setbacks, slower recovery or heat-pump-aware controls avoid that. In larger buildings, "optimal start" logic calculates how early recovery must begin.
Founder takeaway
Design setback logic for the equipment it controls; with heat pumps, limit setback depth and avoid recovering on backup heat.
sources
engineer review pending