I try to be economical (cheap) with my utilities. When I am at home, I like to keep the A.C. set to 75 degrees, but when I leave for work in the morning I turn the AC unit off, and don’t turn it on again until i get home. By the time i get home, it’s 82 degrees and I turn the AC back on to 75degrees. The house is empty from 7:30 to 5:30 (10hrs). Is it cheaper to have the AC running all day at 75/76 degrees or to turn the AC on and off each day as described above?
The AC unit is pretty new (8months old), and the condo is only 1000 sq ft and not too large, so these two facts combined mean that it only takes 15-25 minutes to cool the place down even after having it turned off for the 10hrs.
The best idea, for the state of your possessions, would be to raise the temperature to about 80 while you’re out.
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i was told, but not sure if its true, but the electric company guy, that it cost more to try and re cool your house than if you were to just leave it running, but not sure if its true,
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. By turning it off for 10 hours your temp goes up how long does it take to cool down? if it is not that long then keep up the good work. If it takes for ever are you saving any money or just being uncomfortable for hours
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You’re nuts, don’t turn it off, you’re wasting money. It takes longer for your system to cool the house off after being off all day then if you just set the thermostat a bit higher when you’re not home. When you get home and click it on, does it stay running pretty much all night? Yea, that’s cause the house got too hot, just like turning your car on and off, not good for it (obviously not for that long, but you get the point). If you keep it at 75 when you are home, I’d say maybe like 78ish when you leave. It won’t run all day long, but it’ll still keep it down enough that it won’t have to run all night long to catch up.
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Palm Springs residents told us that constant use of airconditioning so lessened the burden on their freezer that the electric bill was actually less.
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The best idea, for the state of your possessions, would be to raise the temperature to about 80 while you’re out.
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yes
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yes
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Been there & done that. Yes it is cheaper to turn it off. Your gone 10 hours. It doesn’t take more than an hour to cool it back down again. Do you have the option of installing a programable thermostate that would turn it back on for you at a time you select? I’d say an hour before your due to return.
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personal experience
you are doing it the right way
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by not running it you save money.. well.. thats what i was told?
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This was said in previous answers but it all comes down to the amount of time your ac is running to reach your desired target temp. If for example you want to achieve 75 degrees you have a few options. If you leave your unit off while at work and return to find the house at 85 degrees, guage the amount of time it takes to cool your house down the 10 degrees. Another option you may have is to set your thermostat at a constant 75 degrees in which the ac will flip on as needed 76+ to reestablish 75 degrees. Finally while away at work you can set your away target temp at 78-80 degrees so that when you return your ac requires far less operation time to establish reaching the target 75 degrees.
Mind you this is all depended on the environment and conditions in your house (e.g. number of windows facing rising/setting sun, vaulted ceilings, time of day etc).
My recommendation is to write down the amount of time while the ac is operating during each of the three scenarios I mentioned above. I personally have an 1300 sq ft 2nd story condo with 15 foot ceilings that faces the setting sun so I too was wondering what you were asking as well. I found that by keeping the blinds drawn and setting my away target temp to around 78 degrees I was able to achive my target temp of 75 degrees in about 2 hours max vs keeping the unit off and returning to cool my house from the mid 80s to a comfy 75 (approx 6 hours.) As a final note play it by ear on the expected outside temp. If its forecasted to be in the 90’s that day you can assume that leaving the windows open and the ac off will heat your house as quickly as if you decided to have a nice Yuletide
fire. Hope that helps
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you are saving money the way you are operating the unit right now
Don’t change
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it runs less if it’s left turned on,less cool time.
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If you leave it at a reasonable temp, like 75 I would say yes. Do you turn OFF your furnace in the winter when your not home ?
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If you can cool down your apartment that fast after so many hours of absence, it is cheaper and also more ecological NOT to let the A.C. run during your absence.
The reason is: During your absence you let the A.C. work useless against the environment, meaning the natural flow of heat into a cooler place. This useless energy consumption you save by your momentary behaviour.
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yes but what one suggested with the programmable thermostat would be the best way to go. Yes you are saving, as long as it doesn’t take very long for it to cool off.
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There is a factor POR, point of recovery, if you go beyond that you are waisting energy. 3 to 5 degrees is usually safe
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I’d leave it on… it does take more to cool it down and remove humidity from air.
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Keep it on, just turn the thermostat up a little so it won’t have to work so hard, then when you get home, put it where you are comfortable.
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It is cheeper to set it at a certain degree and keep it there
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You need not change your routine as your method is quite OK. If you continue working your AC for 10 extra hours a day when not needed, the cost will be quite high.
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It is cheaper the way you are going. Moreover, 15 minutes recovey time against 10hours of energy saved while you are out, My brother, you are just doing okay.
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I was always told that re-cooling took the most time and energy. If you insist on keeping the AC off during the day, you might want to consider a whole house fan. Usually by the time you get home the outside air is cooling down. A whole house fan for a 1000 sq ft home (with no fancy bells and whistles) costs about $478. It installs in the ceiling between joists. An easy do it yourself job.
Modern house fans are quiet and can exchange the air in a home through a few open windows in about 12 minutes. These fans help to cool the house faster and use alot less electricity than air conditioners. If you live in a very humid/hot environment using it in conjunction with the AC will still help you to save money. Alot of people who use them find they don’t need to use the AC at all.
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http://www.wholehousefan.com/ordernow.html
Well if u like 2 be cold but it makes air pollution we really need to take care of the earth if we dont want it to stop is axis
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