Setback

Setback is a heating-control setting or mode that lowers the room-temperature target for part of a schedule, such as overnight or when the home is unoccupied. In heat pump controls it usually means keeping the system available at a lower setpoint rather than switching space heating fully off. Energy Saving Trust recommends using a set-back strategy for heat pumps by lowering the target by a few degrees during some periods, because large temperature drops can leave the heat pump with a heavier reheating task afterwards. The term appears in controller screens, thermostat schedules, manuals and handover conversations. It is not a fixed temperature, a heating curve, weather compensation, frost protection or proof that the controls are correctly commissioned.