What Does Hold Mean on a Thermostat?

“Hold” is a function on programmable thermostats. A temporary hold on the programmed schedule means you can raise or lower the temperature and hold it until the next scheduled period, at which point the thermostat will resume its programmed schedule. The thermostat will display the word Hold and may show a timer.

A permanent hold means you have overridden the schedule, and you have to manually resume the schedule. This can also be energy inefficient. A temporary hold may be a better option if you tend to forget things or want to ensure you are in a better position to save energy.

You don’t want to overuse the Hold function on your programmable thermostat – at least not if you want to take full advantage of the energy savings programmable thermostats offer. According to the Department of Energy (DOE), the average homeowner can save as much as 10% on their heating and cooling bills by using their thermostat wisely.

The DOE says you can get these savings by programming the thermostat to raise or lower the temperature by 7-10 degrees 8 hours a day. This would typically be while everyone is away at work or school.

Using the Hold function disrupts this schedule, but there are times when you need it, including:

• You’re having a large gathering where you need to keep everyone warmer or cooler than your set temperature.
• Someone is staying home sick from school or work.
• You’re going away for the weekend or a longer vacation and don’t have a “Vacation Mode” setting.

We’ll discuss the specifics for Trane thermostat models, but these directions are similar for other brands. Refer to your thermostat owner’s manual for specifics.

Manual operation Manual operation will bypass the program. Adjust the temperature up or down. The temperature you set in Hold will be maintained indefinitely. The HOLD key will appear on the touchscreen. Press the HOLD key. “Hold At” will appear next to the set point temperature and the thermostat will maintain the new set point temperature until you press Run Schedule to resume program operation

Temporary hold

Press the up or down temperature keys to adjust the temperature. This will override the temperature setting for a (default) four-hour override period. You can shorten or lengthen the override period by pressing the +/- time programming keys. The Program Override period can range from 15 minutes to 7 days.

The words “Hold Until” will appear on the screen and display when the temporary hold will end. You can end the temporary hold early and return to the programmed schedule by pressing Run Schedule.

Manual operation Hold Temperature (bypassing the schedule) – With the System set to Heat or Cool, momentarily press the Hold/Run button. The word “Hold” will appear on the touchscreen. Use the up or down temperature keys to adjust the temperature. The thermostat will hold the room temperature at the selected setting until you press Hold/Run again to start program operation.

Temporary hold Program Override (Temporary Hold) – Press the up or down temperature keys until your desired temperature is displayed. The thermostat will override the schedule until the next programmed period with a minimum override of 2 hours. Then the thermostat will automatically revert to the program.

If you instituted a temporary hold, the thermostat will come out of hold mode after the time you selected, or the default time if you didn’t choose a time.

If you did a manual override with the Hold button and didn’t schedule a time for the hold to end, you will have to manually end the Hold. Depending on the thermostat, you may need to press the Hold button/key again or press a Run Schedule button/key to resume the programmed schedule.

Remember to take the thermostat off of Hold. The whole point of having a programmable thermostat is to have a set temperature program that can help you use less energy and save money on your heating and cooling bills.

While programmable thermostats have a Hold function, it’s a little more complicated to override the thermostat schedule on a smart thermostat. Use the Trane Home App or the web portal and use an automation to override the schedule, set your chosen temperature, and tell the thermostat when to resume the program.

Visit Trane Home Support for step-by-step directions on temporarily overriding schedules using automations.

Call your local Trane dealer for assistance if your thermostat stopped working and you can’t figure out why. If it’s a Trane smart thermostat and you have granted Trane Diagnostics remote access, they may be able to troubleshoot the issue and fix it remotely.

If you need a new thermostat or have other HVAC issues, they can also schedule an on-site visit to get your HVAC system operating as it should.

Anne Fonda, Content Writer at Trane Technologies

A Content Writer with Trane Technologies, Anne Fonda researches topics and writes for Trane® and associated residential HVAC brands. She works in collaboration with Trane Technologies subject matter experts, offering easy-to-understand, informative content on complex topics. Her goal is to help consumers make informed decisions on the products and services they need.

She has written for HVAC and other service provider websites for over 16 years. Before transitioning to web content writing, Anne had a 14-year stint as an award-winning journalist. She graduated cum laude from the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Journalism. When she’s not working, Anne enjoys playing word games, reading, gardening, spending time with family, and visiting gardens and museums.

Expert review by Michael Morey, Smart Thermostat Product Manager

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