Lowering the thermostat while everyone is at work during the day: Good or Bad Idea

[KJKraemer]

This is our first full winter with a pellet stove. I am using a Quadra-Fire CB 1200i as the primary heat source in the house. The house is generally empty for about 10 hours during the day so I have the electronic thermostat set to lower when we leave. However, on cold days it takes a LONG time to heat the whole house back up (about 2300 sq ft cape). Once the house is warm, the stove does a nice job of maintaining the heat.

Was wondering what other folks do when they are out of the house for an extended period? Should I just leave the temp set basically the same and try to maintain a constant temp in lieu of trying to re-heat the whole house at the end of the work day. As I said, it maintains the heat (cycles on and off) once the house is warm but really struggles to warm up the house when it's been down during the day. Any guidance would be appreciated.

 

[kofkorn]

I think that lowering the temp is a good idea, but what you are noticing in the length of time to raise the temp is pretty typical for a pellet stove. They usually run much better at maintaining a temperature for a long time rather than raising and lowering at will.

You could lower the stat during the day (10 hours is a long time to keep it elevated for no reason) and then boost the temperature with your furnace or alternate heating system for 20 min or so. If you have a programmable for your furnace, you could set it to a temperature 3-4 degrees lower than the pellet stove. This way the furnace will cut off as the stove takes over.

That's how it's set at our house. Maximizes the efficiency of both the stove and furnace.

 

[Jambruins]

I have been turning mine down to 50 from 7:45-2:30 but the last few days the house has been very cold when my wife/son got home. It would eventually get back up to a good temp after a few hours. This morning I changed the thermostat to keep the house at 60 instead of 50. I would say if you are going to turn it way down make sure you set it to increase the temp about 2-3 hours before getting home.

 

[Xena]

You could lower the stat during the day (10 hours is a long time to keep it elevated for no reason) and then boost the temperature with your furnace or alternate heating system for 20 min or so.

This works for me if the stove struggles to re-heat the place
on colder days.

 

[ebengel]

I have mine set to 60 during the day and start bringing the temp back up
45 minutes before my daughter gets home from school.

 

[Sawduster]

I leave mine on 75 degrees 24/7 - uses more pellets, but works for me, and keeps the cats warm while I'm at work.

 

[ablejoy]

I set my tstat to hold 70 degrees when were out it will shut down in the afternoon.Burning about a bag a day low temp 20's high in 50's. We set the fan and feed on low when were out back to medium when were home.

 

[slheinlein]

I have experiemented with lowering my stove temperature at night. I also notice it takes a long time for my house to warm back up in the morning. Also, it appears that I just end up burning the saved pellets since my stove runs very high to heat the house back up. I have decided to be comfortable when I wake up and keep the thermostat the same temp at night. Any pellets I might have saved is probably not much and I'd rather be comfortable than freezing in the morning.

 

[mnkywrnch]

I agree with warmInNH ther might be some savings with turning it down but not much,Ill take comfort over alittle savings.

 

[TboneMan]

Like you, my stove will not easily recover temps. in the house. Last year I was a bit more aggressive with my thermostat setting. This year (with a larger UPS, I'm direct vented) I have my stove shut down for 4 hours during the day.

If the temps are forecast to be cold (highs in the low 20's or less) I leave the convection fan on medium. If the temps are suppose to be relatively mild, I set the fan to low. If additional recovery is needed when I get home, I click the fan up one notch.

The stove runs all night at a slightly lower setting, and weekends days.

I'll use a few more pellets than I did last year, but the house is much more comfortable.

 

[Lobstah]

I warm everything up in the morning with oil...cheaper than pellets right now. Have it set to come up to 70 around 5am for an hour, I think. then down to 60.
Pellets take care of the rest.

Jim