How thermostat schedule periods work
Each period is a start time plus a heating and cooling setpoint. The thermostat holds that period's temperatures until the next period begins, so Wake runs until Away, Away until Home, and so on through the night. On Honeywell Home models you can set them differently for weekdays and weekends, and switch unused periods off.
What is a schedule period?
A period is a block of the day with its own temperature. You give it a start time and a setpoint for heating and one for cooling. It has no end time of its own: it simply lasts until the next period starts.
Honeywell's T6 Pro user guide describes the four periods by what you are doing at the time:
- Wake: from when you get up until you leave for the day.
- Away: from when you leave until you come back, usually set at an energy-saving level.
- Home: from your return until bedtime.
- Sleep: overnight, usually at an energy-saving level again.
Because each period hands off to the next, the order matters more than the names. The Sleep period you set for 10:00 pm keeps running past midnight and right up to the next morning's Wake time.
What are the default times and temperatures?
Honeywell Home programs its thermostats with a starting schedule and recommends keeping those values because they can lower heating and cooling costs. The times are the same across the models we checked, but the cooling setpoints differ by model.
| Period and start time | T6 Pro heat(°F) | T6 Pro cool(°F) | FocusPRO 6000 heat(°F) | FocusPRO 6000 cool(°F) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wake, 6:00 am | 70 | 78 | 70 | 75 |
| Away or Leave, 8:00 am | 62 | 85 | 62 | 83 |
| Home or Return, 6:00 pm | 70 | 78 | 70 | 75 |
| Sleep, 10:00 pm | 62 | 82 | 62 | 78 |
These numbers assume you leave at 8:00 am and come home at 6:00 pm on weekdays. If your day looks different, change the start times first. A setback that starts after you have already left, or ends before you get home, saves little.
What are the periods called on each thermostat?
The labels vary, and the number of periods is not always four.
| Thermostat | Period names | Day options | Skipping a period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Honeywell Home T6 Pro | Wake, Away, Home, Sleep | Set by installer option 120: 5-2, 5-1-1 or 7-Day; 0 makes it non-programmable | Each period can be switched on or off |
| Honeywell Home T9 | Wake, Away, Home, Sleep | Grouped days or single days | Not stated |
| Honeywell Home VisionPRO TH8000 | Wake, Leave, Return, Sleep | 7-day programmable | "CANCEL PERIOD"; function 0540 sets 2 or 4 periods |
| Honeywell Home FocusPRO 6000 | Wake, Leave, Return, Sleep | Weekdays (Mon to Fri) and weekend (Sat to Sun) | "CANCEL PERIOD" for any period except Wake |
| Google Nest Learning Thermostat, Thermostat E | No named periods; individual setpoints | Each day can differ; you can copy a day | Add or remove setpoints |
On the T6 Pro, installer option 120 decides how days are grouped. The choices are 2 for 5-2 (weekdays and weekend), 3 for 5-1-1 (weekdays, Saturday, Sunday), and 4 for 7-Day, with 3 as the factory setting. That is why some T6 Pro owners can set Saturday separately and others cannot.
On the VisionPRO TH8000, advanced function 0540 offers 2 periods (Wake and Sleep) or 4 (Wake, Leave, Return, Sleep). Two periods suit a home that is occupied all day.
The T9 adds two settings to each period: which room sensors the thermostat listens to, called Priority, and the fan mode. ecobee works differently again: the schedule uses named comfort settings rather than fixed periods. See ecobee comfort settings.
How do you edit a period?
On the T6 Pro, press Menu. PROG appears; press Select and leave it at ON. Choose the day or group of days, then the period. The manual's sequence is: keep the period on or turn it off, set the start time, set the "Heat" setpoint, then the "Cool" setpoint. Press Home to save. The same PROG screen is where you switch the whole schedule off.
On the VisionPRO TH8000, press SCHED, then EDIT, pick the days with the MON to SUN buttons, and touch WAKE, LEAVE, RETURN or SLEEP to set each one. DONE saves and CANCEL exits without saving.
On the FocusPRO 6000, press SET CLOCK/DAY/SCHEDULE, then SET SCHEDULE. You set the weekday periods first, then the weekend ones. The guide reminds you to make sure the thermostat is in the system mode you want to program, Heat or Cool.
On a T9, open the menu, choose Schedule, and pick grouped days or single days before touching a period. To use geofencing instead, Honeywell says to set the schedule up in the Resideo app.
When should you turn a period off?
Turn a period off when nothing changes at that time. A household with someone home all day does not need Away and Home. Honeywell's FocusPRO guide notes that Leave and Return can be cancelled on weekends, and the VisionPRO table shows the same suggestion for Saturday and Sunday. When you cancel a period, the one before it simply runs longer.
What happens when you change the temperature during a period?
A manual change overrides only the current period. On the T6 Pro, the new setpoint is held until the next period begins, and then the schedule takes over again. That handoff is the most common reason people think their change "did not stick"; see thermostat keeps returning to its schedule. To keep a temperature longer, use a permanent hold, explained in Honeywell hold vs permanent hold, or a vacation hold for trips.
Many thermostats also start heating or cooling a little before a period begins so the room is ready on time. That is recovery mode, not the period starting early. If a learned schedule appeals more than four fixed blocks, compare the two approaches in learning vs programmable schedules.
Frequently asked questions
- What temperatures does Honeywell recommend for each period?
- The T6 Pro user guide lists Wake at 6:00 am with heat 70°F and cool 78°F, Away at 8:00 am with 62°F and 85°F, Home at 6:00 pm with 70°F and 78°F, and Sleep at 10:00 pm with 62°F and 82°F. The FocusPRO 6000 uses the same times and heat values but lower cooling values.
- Can I use fewer than four periods?
- Yes, on the Honeywell Home models covered here. The T6 Pro lets you switch each period on or off. The VisionPRO TH8000 has CANCEL PERIOD and an advanced function that cuts the day to two periods, Wake and Sleep. The FocusPRO 6000 lets you cancel any period except Wake.
- What happens if I skip the Away period on weekends?
- The previous period keeps running. If you cancel Away and Home on a Saturday, the Wake temperatures stay in effect until Sleep begins. Honeywell's VisionPRO and FocusPRO guides show this as a weekend option.
- Why are the periods called Leave and Return on my thermostat?
- Older Honeywell models such as the VisionPRO TH8000 and FocusPRO 6000 use Wake, Leave, Return and Sleep. Newer models such as the T6 Pro and T9 use Wake, Away, Home and Sleep. The idea is the same; only the labels changed.