The hold button on a thermostat locks in a single temperature and overrides your programmed schedule until you cancel it; the run button does the opposite, returning the thermostat to its automatic schedule. In west-central Minnesota, where furnaces run hard for months below zero, knowing when to hold and when to run keeps your home comfortable without burning extra fuel.
Which button you want depends on the situation. Hold is useful for vacations, guest stays, or irregular schedules, while run restores the energy savings your programming was set up to deliver. Below, the team at Northern Services Today explains how each button behaves, when to reach for it, and how your heating system type changes the result.
What the Hold Button Actually Does
When you press hold, the thermostat stops following its programmed schedule and keeps the room at whatever temperature you set until you tell it otherwise. The furnace or air conditioner still cycles on and off to maintain that number – the only thing that changes is that the clock-based schedule is paused. Nothing is turned off, and nothing is put at risk.
Most thermostats offer two flavors of hold. A temporary hold keeps your chosen temperature only until the next scheduled change, then the program picks back up on its own. A permanent hold (sometimes labeled “vacation” or simply “hold”) stays put until you cancel it by pressing run. Knowing which one your thermostat uses is the difference between a setting that quietly expires overnight and one that stays locked in for a week.
What the Run Button Does
The run button cancels any active hold and hands control back to your programmed schedule. The moment you press it, the thermostat checks the current day and time, finds the matching setpoint in your program, and adjusts to it. Press run during a scheduled setback period and the temperature will drop (or rise, in summer) to the programmed number; press it during an occupied period and it returns to your comfort setting. On some models the button is labeled “run schedule” or “cancel,” but it does the same job.
Hold vs Run: When to Use Each
The two buttons are simple, but using them well is what actually saves fuel. Here is how the team at Northern Services Today sorts it out for local homes.
Reach for Hold When
- You’re leaving on a vacation or long trip and don’t want the house heating or cooling to full comfort while nobody is home.
- You have guests or a sick day and want steady comfort outside your normal schedule.
- Your schedule is irregular that day – shift work or an unusual routine that your programmed times don’t match.
- A cold snap or heat wave hits and you’d rather park one set temperature than let the schedule swing.
Reach for Run When
- Your normal routine resumes after any of the situations above.
- You notice the thermostat is stuck on a temperature that no longer fits the day.
- A guest leaves or you get home from a trip and want your setbacks working again.
The trap to avoid is leaving the thermostat on a comfortable temperature under permanent hold all season. Do that and you throw away the whole point of a programmed schedule, which is to ease off the heat while you sleep or while you’re away. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates a household can save up to 10% a year on heating and cooling by turning the thermostat back 7 to 10°F for eight hours a day – savings you only get when the run schedule is doing its job. If you’re weighing whether a programmed schedule is worth the setup, our guide to the benefits and considerations of programmable thermostats walks through it.
One local caveat: the Department of Energy notes that setback savings are larger in milder climates than in severe ones, because the gap between indoor and outdoor temperature is what drives heat loss. West-central Minnesota winters are about as severe as it gets, so your percentage may land on the lower end. Even so, with furnaces running for months straight, a smaller percentage of a big heating bill is still real money.
How Your Heating System Changes the Answer
The right hold-and-run habit depends on what’s in your basement or utility room.
Gas and Propane Furnaces
Standard furnaces, whether they run on natural gas in town or propane out on rural properties, handle setbacks and recovery well. Hold and run work exactly as described: press hold to park a temperature, press run to get your setbacks back. This covers most of the homes we service around Olivia, Willmar, and Hutchinson.
Heat Pumps
Heat pumps are the exception. The Department of Energy cautions that deep setbacks on a heat pump in heating mode can trigger the electric auxiliary (backup) heat during recovery, which is expensive and can cancel out the savings you were chasing. If you heat with a heat pump, use a thermostat designed for it and keep setbacks modest, or lean on the manufacturer’s recovery settings instead of large manual holds. Not sure your setup is a good match? Our look at whether a smart thermostat is worth it covers the heat-pump-friendly models.
In-Floor and Radiant Heat
Radiant and in-floor systems respond slowly – it can take hours for a room to catch up after a change. Big holds and sudden run recoveries don’t suit them, so small, steady adjustments work better than large temperature swings.
Getting the Most From Your Thermostat Through a Minnesota Winter
A few habits go a long way once the temperature drops below zero and stays there.
- Set realistic targets. The Department of Energy suggests around 68°F when you’re home and awake in winter, lower while you sleep or you’re out, and about 78°F when you’re home in summer. Start there and adjust to what your household finds comfortable.
- Hold smart when you travel. Don’t shut the heat off in a Minnesota winter. Set a hold around 55 to 60°F instead – low enough to save fuel, warm enough to keep your pipes from freezing. For more on protecting a home you’re leaving empty, see our essential plumbing tips for new homeowners in Minnesota.
- Mind the placement. A thermostat reads the room best on an interior wall, away from direct sun, drafts, doorways, and windows. A unit baking in afternoon sun or sitting next to a drafty door will misread the room and undercut every hold and run setting you make.
- Consider a smart thermostat. ENERGY STAR certified smart thermostats average about 8% savings on heating and cooling – roughly $50 a year for a typical household – and many manage the hold-and-run decision for you using occupancy sensing and your phone’s location. If you’re building out a connected home, our overview of smart home technologies for efficient heating and cooling shows how they fit together.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does using hold waste energy?
Not by itself. It depends on the temperature you hold compared with your schedule. Holding a lower temperature while you’re away saves energy; holding a comfortable temperature around the clock, through what would have been overnight setbacks, uses more than the schedule would have.
Will leaving my thermostat on hold hurt my furnace?
No. Hold simply keeps one setpoint – the furnace cycles to maintain it just as it would under a schedule. There’s no mechanical downside; the only cost is the extra fuel if you hold a warmer temperature than you need.
What temperature should I hold when I leave town in the winter?
Around 55 to 60°F. That protects your plumbing from freezing while still trimming your heating bill. Never turn the system fully off during a west-central Minnesota cold snap.
Should I keep my thermostat on hold all winter?
Usually not, if you want the savings a schedule delivers. The exception is a home that’s occupied and wants the same temperature 24 hours a day – then a single steady setting is fine. Otherwise, use run so your setbacks keep working.
Thermostat Trouble? Northern Services Today Can Help
If your thermostat won’t hold a temperature, your furnace is short-cycling, or you’re ready to upgrade to a smart thermostat that handles hold and run for you, our licensed team is here for it. Northern Services Today handles heating, cooling, plumbing, and electrical work for homes across Olivia, Willmar, Hutchinson, Litchfield, Redwood Falls, and the surrounding west-central Minnesota communities. Call us at (320) 523-5862 to schedule service or ask a question about your system.