Smart thermostats are popular among builders and consumers. Who wouldn’t want the ability to change the temperature in your home while on the other side of the country? This and other possibilities make the very idea of a smart thermostat sound too good to be true.

Yes, there are some benefits to a smart thermostat and other technology you may use to create a more comfortable home environment. Before you jump on the bandwagon, you may want to consider a few things.

Would You Try to Air Condition the Outdoors?

For the sake of getting the point across as quickly as possible, let’s get silly for just a moment: Would you ever consider setting up a heating and cooling system for your screened-in porch? Would you attempt to control the climate of a room that has no real walls? Of course you wouldn’t. You’d do what you could to keep it comfortable, but spending extra money on technology that can’t win in a battle against the elements would be folly, right?

Now consider using that same smart thermostat in a home that was built with subpar materials and a lack of attention to detail. This home may have passed all the necessary inspections, but you know that the crawl space isn’t correctly sealed. You know the insulation only helps so much during the hottest and coldest months. You know there’s a draft at every window and door, and that the ductwork leaks like a sieve. Wouldn’t installing the smart thermostat in a home like this be the same as installing it outside?

Why Dumb Homes May Be Better than Smart Ones

The comfort of your home doesn’t rely on the technology, as you can see. Before you consider smart thermostats, you must first focus on the quality of the structure. You’re better off living in a “dumb” home without any technology at all than you would be if you purchased the best and most expensive trends.

If you want to make sure your home is well built before approaching possible upgrades, give us a call. We can help you increase the comfort and air quality of your home without one single piece of smart technology. With the help of ventilation fans, spray foam insulation, and duct sealing, you may find you don’t need a new thermostat at all.

Smart technology can have a significant impact on your energy usage, but only if the basics have already been covered. Let’s not skip arithmetic and jump straight into calculus. Let’s be smart about making your home "smart."