It has been argued a lot that keeping your air conditioner set on one temperature all the time saves more money that turning it up and down. To set the record straight, this is a myth. The less you use something, the less it costs. Here are a few reasons why this misconception has been taken for fact and what you can do to lower utility costs.
Many consumers think that it uses less energy to keep your AC set on one temperature all the time. You have probably been told this from friends and family and the reasoning for it sounds like good sense, but in actuality it isn’t. The argument is that it uses less energy to run something continuously than to stop and start it several times. That is has to work harder to get back to a comfortable temperature once it has been off for several hours.
Although the reasoning behind it seems to make sense, the more you use something like electricity the more it costs. It is just that simple, the longer your system runs, the more electricity it uses. Your heating and cooling system has two settings-on and off. It runs until it reaches the temperature set on the thermostat and then turns off until it is needed again. Contrary to popular belief, your house will only absorb so much heat from being lowered or off for a period of time.
If you turn the heat or air conditioning off when you leave the house, there will be a period of adjustment while the temperature returns to its former setting. T his can be a little uncomfortable, so a better alternative would be to buy a programmable thermostat and raise or lower the temperature while you are away and set it to return to normal settings about an hour before you return home. You will save money by not running the system when no one is home. Why heat or cool empty space?
A programmable thermostat will allow you to customize your comfort settings and use a lot less energy by reducing the usage when everyone is gone. You can also lower the temperature at night by one or two degrees for a little added savings.
For more information on topics related to heat or air conditioning, contact ABA Heating and Cooling. We are your Austin AC repair experts. Our NATE-certified technicians can inspect your current system and make suggestions on what you can do to increase its efficiency. If repair or a replacement is needed, we carry the top name brands in the industry.
