We can now make adjustments to temperature from wherever we happen to be via our smartphones.
When my husband and I reached retirement age, we decided to buy a second home in St. Petersburg, Florida. The area is just beautiful, and the climate is amazing. Having two properties allows us to enjoy the best weather in each location. We live in our original home in the northeast from early May until the end of October. We are relieved to avoid the intense heat and humidity of St. Petersburg. We spend the months from November thru April down south and are happy to escape the below-zero temperatures, brutal wind chill and feet of snow up north. However, having two houses to take care of creates some expenses and challenges. We needed to invest into a second set of small appliances, tools and accessories. We now own two lawnmowers, shovels, wheelbarrows, cooking utensils, linens and essential household items. There are concerns whenever one of the properties is empty. We worried about the furnace failing and pipes freezing over the winter. We had issues with mold and mildew growth in our St. Petersburg home. Just recently, we upgraded to a smart thermostat for each location. This has been a huge improvement. We can now make adjustments to temperature from wherever we happen to be via our smartphones. Along with conserving energy and catering to comfort, we receive maintenance reminders, power outage notifications and alerts if there is a sudden temperature swing. We can easily make sure that the home is at an ideal temperature for our arrival. Plus, the smart thermostat offers energy saving tips and controls the humidifier up north and the dehumidifier down south.