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Glossary

Terms for Architecture, Green Building & Energy


This glossary includes more than 300 solar terms, as well as hundreds of additional sustainable design and construction terms.

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Programmable Thermostat

Definition: A programmable thermostat is a thermostat which is designed to adjust the temperature according to a series of programmed settings that take effect at different times of the day. Programmable thermostats may also be called setback thermostats or clock thermostats.

For example, during cooling season, a programmable thermostat used in a home may be set to allow the temperature in the house to rise during the workday when no one will be at home. It may then be set to turn on the air conditioning before the arrival of occupants, allowing the house to be cool upon the arrival of the occupants while still having saved air conditioning energy during the peak outdoor temperatures. The reduced cooling required during the day also decreases the demands placed upon the electrical supply grid.

Conversely, during the heating season, the programmable thermostat may be set to allow the temperature in the house to drop when the house is unoccupied during the day and also at night after all occupants have gone to bed, re-heating the house prior to the occupants arriving home in the evening or waking up in the morning. Since most people sleep better when a room is cooler and the temperature differential between the interior and exterior of a building will be greatest on a cold winter night, this reduces energy losses.

NOTE: While programmable thermostats may be able to save energy when used correctly, little or no average energy savings has been demonstrated in residential field studies. Difficulty with usability in residential environments appears to lead to lack of persistence of energy savings in homes. In addition to potential increased energy consumption, digital programmable thermostats have been criticised for their poor usability.