| Posted By |
Message |
melbalalala
Little Lady
Member since 5/07 5014 total posts
Name:
Melissa
|
Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
We turn it off in the morning when we leave the house at 7 and turn it on when we get home between 630-730.
Ive seen some posts that say people keep it on, at a higher temp, during the day. Is there a reason for this?
|
Posted 8/9/07 12:40 PM  |
| |
|
Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate
Long Island's Largest Bridal Resource | Long Island Weddings |
BobBsWife
No more school= too much time!
Member since 5/05 1395 total posts
Name:
Tracy
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
I keep mine on for the animals
|
| Posted 8/9/07 12:50 PM |
| |
|
Kelly9904
Mommy to 2 amazing little boys
Member since 5/05 9306 total posts
Name:
Kelly
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
Message edited 1/30/2009 10:29:34 PM.
|
| Posted 8/9/07 12:52 PM |
| |
|
Kissy331
My two miracles!
Member since 5/06 17826 total posts
Name:
Kristen
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
You are not suppose to turn the unit on & off because it uses more electricity & can burn the unit out a lot quicker. Also it takes a lot longer to get the house to the temperature you want it. If you make the temperature like 78 or so when you leave, the unit will not be running constantly throughout the day but when you get home, you won't have to put so much stress on the machine to have it get to 72 or so!
|
| Posted 8/9/07 1:05 PM |
| |
|
kerrycec03
Mom of 2 beautiful boys!!
Member since 6/06 13519 total posts
Name:
Kerry
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
BIG NO NO. You waste more electricity turning it on/off especially CAC. I was told by an electrician to leave it on, just change the temps.
|
| Posted 8/9/07 1:07 PM |
| |
|
sarahbelle
Little drummer boy
Member since 5/05 2377 total posts
Name:
Sarah
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
I leave mine on 80 for the same reason as the other posters. It uses more electricity to turn it on and off. At 80 it just doesn't run.
|
| Posted 8/9/07 1:19 PM |
| |
|
cjik
Welcome 2010!
Member since 2/06 8879 total posts
Name:
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
So it's actually cheaper to run it day and night rather than turn it off in the morning and on again in the evening? Seems odd, but since so many of you are saying this, I'll take your word for it.
I could see you wouldn't want to keep turning it off and on, but I wouldn't think it would be good to run it constantly either. Guess I need to learn more about this.
|
| Posted 8/9/07 1:43 PM |
| |
|
lulugrrl
My 3 Blessings
Member since 3/06 6551 total posts
Name:
L
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
I leave it on for my dog..but I leave it at a higher temp during the day.
|
| Posted 8/9/07 2:08 PM |
| |
|
melbalalala
Little Lady
Member since 5/07 5014 total posts
Name:
Melissa
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
Posted by cjik
So it's actually cheaper to run it day and night rather than turn it off in the morning and on again in the evening? Seems odd, but since so many of you are saying this, I'll take your word for it.
I could see you wouldn't want to keep turning it off and on, but I wouldn't think it would be good to run it constantly either. Guess I need to learn more about this.
yeah, we have a brand new unit that cools things off within the first 20 minutes we get home.
cooling a house, even if its to 80 degrees, for 12 hours seems like a waste when it only takes 20 minutes to reach a comfortable temp for us when we get home.
you girls got me thinking.. Im gonna have to research this...
|
| Posted 8/9/07 2:17 PM |
| |
|
SweetestOfPeas
J'taime Paris!
Member since 3/06 32345 total posts
Name:
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
like everyone else said, its actually costing you more b/c then the AC has to work REALLY hard to get your place cooled down again.
it's the same concept as heating. would you shut off your heat in the winter?
Message edited 8/9/2007 2:26:37 PM.
|
| Posted 8/9/07 2:26 PM |
| |
|
CunningOne
***
Member since 5/05 26975 total posts
Name:
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
Ours has been on 24/7 since mid-May. We only turned it off when we went away for a week last month. It's always on, we just adjust temperature up and down as needed.
|
| Posted 8/9/07 3:02 PM |
| |
|
melbalalala
Little Lady
Member since 5/07 5014 total posts
Name:
Melissa
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
Posted by SweetestOfPeas
like everyone else said, its actually costing you more b/c then the AC has to work REALLY hard to get your place cooled down again.
it's the same concept as heating. would you shut off your heat in the winter?
Yes  
Oops!
|
| Posted 8/9/07 3:03 PM |
| |
|
GoldenRod
10 years on LIF!
Member since 11/06 26792 total posts
Name:
Shawn
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
Truth (and math) regarding running AC all day vs. turning it off:
http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/cooling.html
http://kyotoaction.com/main_electricity2.htm
• When leaving the house or apartment for more than an hour, set the air-conditioning temperature to 85°F/29°C or above or, even better, turn it off. Don't believe the false myth that it takes more energy to cool the space again, than just leaving the air conditioning on; turn it off. You'll save energy and the environment.
Turn the thermostat up a few degrees when you have the air conditioning on. 74 degrees is very comfortable and you are saving up to 5% on your electric bills for each degree of temperature change.
|
| Posted 8/9/07 3:24 PM |
| |
|
melbalalala
Little Lady
Member since 5/07 5014 total posts
Name:
Melissa
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
Posted by GoldenRod
Truth (and math) regarding running AC all day vs. turning it off:
http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/cooling.html
http://kyotoaction.com/main_electricity2.htm
• When leaving the house or apartment for more than an hour, set the air-conditioning temperature to 85°F/29°C or above or, even better, turn it off. Don't believe the false myth that it takes more energy to cool the space again, than just leaving the air conditioning on; turn it off. You'll save energy and the environment.
Great site!:
It's a myth that leaving the AC on while you're away at work uses less energy than turning it on when you get home. Here's why:
Heat goes to where it's not. With the AC off, your house will absorb heat from outside, but at some point it will be so hot it can't absorb any more heat. When you come home and turn the AC on, the AC has to remove the accumulated heat only once.
But if the AC is on when you're gone, then your house is constantly absorbing heat because your AC is constantly cooling down the house. The AC has basically turned your house into a heat magnet. So your AC is removing absorbed heat over and over and over again.
Let's say you leave the AC off, and your house absorbs 20k BTU's of heat and then stops, because that's all it can absorb.
Now let's say that you have the AC running instead. The house absorbs 5k BTU's of heat, so the AC kicks in and removes it. Then it absorbs another 5k BTU's, and your AC kicks in and removes that. Repeat that process several times during the day.
This is not a gray area, and there's no question about it: running the AC when you're not home wastes energy, period.
 Who knows what to believe anymore. I think Im gonna stick with turning it off during the day. The hottest the house has gotten while we are at work is 85 degrees.
|
| Posted 8/9/07 3:35 PM |
| |
|
~Colleen~
my loves...
Member since 5/05 9129 total posts
Name:
guess
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
If you go by Energy Star guidelines, it is recommended that you use a programmable thermostat. You set your therm at an energy efficient temperature for the bulk of the day (78-82 degrees is recommended) and then when you come home it is set to 74-76. You can calculate your savings on their site.
Why bother yourself with turning the system on and off?
Why walk into a hot, stuffy house when you can set the system to go on 15 minutes before you are due home, thus walking into a comfortable space?
|
| Posted 8/9/07 3:39 PM |
| |
|
Tine73
Member since 3/06 22093 total posts
Name:
*********
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
We turn it off during the day. we're gone 7am - 7pm.
|
| Posted 8/9/07 3:41 PM |
| |
|
melbalalala
Little Lady
Member since 5/07 5014 total posts
Name:
Melissa
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
Posted by ~Colleen~
If you go by Energy Star guidelines, it is recommended that you use a programmable thermostat. You set your therm at an energy efficient temperature for the bulk of the day (78-82 degrees is recommended) and then when you come home it is set to 74-76. You can calculate your savings on their site.
Why bother yourself with turning the system on and off?
Why walk into a hot, stuffy house when you can set the system to go on 15 minutes before you are due home, thus walking into a comfortable space?
ours is already programmable, we just need to learn how to use it (we just moved in in June) you are right, that 15 minute cooldown before we get home would be MUCH appreciated.
|
| Posted 8/9/07 3:43 PM |
| |
|
SweetestOfPeas
J'taime Paris!
Member since 3/06 32345 total posts
Name:
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
 really? I never heard of anyone doing that.
even when we go away for a week, I just lower my heat really low, like to 63.
|
| Posted 8/9/07 3:46 PM |
| |
|
GoldenRod
10 years on LIF!
Member since 11/06 26792 total posts
Name:
Shawn
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
Two years ago, I turned the programmable thermostat down really low during the day. However, the first floor retained a lot of heat, so the furnace never had to kick on and circulate any hot water for the radiators.... a few hours of water not moving, and some of the pipes froze because they were in an uninsulated crawl space.... 
|
| Posted 8/9/07 3:49 PM |
| |
|
melbalalala
Little Lady
Member since 5/07 5014 total posts
Name:
Melissa
|
Re: Spinoff to all of these A/C questions.. Am I the only one that turns the CAC completely off during the day?
Posted by SweetestOfPeas
really? I never heard of anyone doing that.
even when we go away for a week, I just lower my heat really low, like to 63.
Oh when we go away we keep it on in fear of pipes cracking/bursting from freezing, but while we are gone for work we turn it off. Im probably destroying our HVAC systeM!
|
| Posted 8/9/07 3:50 PM |
| |
|
