How cold do you keep the A/C in your home during summer?

[rescueme]

Your wife can throw on a long sleeved shirt but taking off your shirt won't help.

Funny, but this is part of the "logic" we have in choosing to live where we do (mid-Atlantic).

We were born/raised in this climate and enjoy the seasons. While in the military, we lived just under two years in the Florida Panhandle (Eglin AFB), so we are familiar with mostly year-round warm weather.

Our reason (as related to temperatures) to come back here after I was discharged was the same idea; that is you can always put on more clothes (e.g. layer), but you can't take them all off.

Even with today's weather in our area (most days above 90, for the last three months), my wife is looking forward to cooler days and some outerwear...

 

[FIREd]

I just received my electric bill:

A/C set on 69 all month. Temps outside: 90-100 during the day and 70-80 at night for at least the past month. We used 1836 KWh for the month (don't know how much of that is A/C). Cost: $160.64.

 

[NW-Bound]

Our highest bill last year was in Aug. Usage of 3894 KWhr at a cost of $419. Daily usage of 126 KWhr. And our two-story house is 2800 sqft, which does not qualify as a McMansion. I do not remember the SEER of the AC, but it was only a few years old.

Yes, it is hot here, but I suspect my college-age children are the energy guzzlers at home. Now that my daughter has moved out, it might explain why our consumption for July 2010 is only 2704 KWhr, compared to last year of 3656 KWhr.

As my children do not have to bear the cost and "feel the pain", they simply see no reason to conserve. I have two water heater tanks of 50 gal each to make use of the solar water heater, and they have been known to run both tanks cold! Now when visiting my daughter's apartment, I see that she sets the thermostat on the warm side. Yes, when things are not "free", one tends to be not so wasteful.

 

[Rustic23]

NW Bound,
What I find interesting is your rate .107 is the same as ours in S.E. Texas. We also have 2,800 sq ft but In July, we used only 1412 kwhr.

 

[NW-Bound]

1412 KWHr vs. 2704 !

There, we have it, ladies and gentlemen. Despite what REW has repeatedly claimed, you want to move to Texas. Do not, repeat, do not move to AZ, particularly the low desert area. You have been warned! Ask yourself how much of this "dry heat" you can stand.

 

[REWahoo]

1412 KWHr vs. 2704 !

There, we have it, ladies and gentlemen. Despite what REW has repeatedly claimed, you want to move to Texas.

Not...so...fast.

2,700 SF house, July usage 2,525 KWHr.

Did I mention renewing a TX DL is a form of bureaucratic torture. I can only imagine the hell you'd have to go through moving here.

 

[NW-Bound]

We need to get into another contest. One about "I set my thermostat higher than you set yours and still pay more".

And about DL, you can't fool us. We all know many full-time RV'ers go to TX to establish their virtual address and get their license there.

 

[Rustic23]

Could have something to do with construction. Our house was built 5 years ago. I think 14 seer AC, Low double e cubed windows, and extra bat insulation in the attic. Continuous ridge vents, and soffits, good insulation in outside walls, however, I don't know exactly the R value. Also 650 sq. ft. or so of the house is a guest house with separate a/c. That portion is set at 85 and cools down to 80 between 1 am and 3 am, to pull the moisture out of the area.

Added: Gas for hot water, cooking, and heat. That is about $1,000 a year for propane. Add that to the electric cost and my guess is we are about even. Do run pump to water lawn, from lake mostly in the summer.

 

[REWahoo]

I think it has a lot to do with our base electrical load outside cooling and heating costs. The house is 13 years old and reasonably well insulated but we are all electric out here in the sticks - no gas or propane. We use ~1,000 KWh per month even when we don't run any heating or cooling. The well pump, pressure pump, septic pump, water heater, refrigerators, and other appliances account for that base load and it doesn't change much - no matter where we set the thermostat.

 

[NW-Bound]

In April, when we needed neither heating nor cooling, our usage was 1519 kWhr. So, that rules out the possibility of poor insulation. No well pump here, but there's the swimming pool pump. No natural gas here either.

 

[Telly]

In April, when we needed neither heating nor cooling, our usage was 1519 kWhr. So, that rules out the possibility of poor insulation. No well pump here, but there's the swimming pool pump. No natural gas here either.

How many hours a day summer/winter are you running the pool pump?
We have a 2 HP pump that we run about 6 hours a day in summer, in the afternoon. When we cover it for out of season with a bubble type of cover, we cut it back to 3 hours. We set the 3 hours for 4 to 7 AM, as on cold nights, that is a time that the freeze guard may kick the pump on anyway. With the bubble cover on, chlorine use is about nil.

 

[NW-Bound]

I also run the pool pump 6 hrs in the summer and 3-4 hrs in the winter. It's 1-1/2 HP, I believe.

I have time-of-use rate, so set the pump timer to run when electricity is cheapest. Also avoid doing laundry during peak hours.

In the summer, the peak hours are 1PM-8PM, and only on weekdays. The cost is $0.2130/kWhr. The off-peak rate is $0.0660/kWhr. Huge difference. Just cannot think of a way to store off that cheap energy.

 

[scrabbler1]

Egads, I just got my electric bill for the 30 days ending around August 18th. A record high, 50% higher than the previous record high one year ago at this time. It is the price to remain cool and comfortable when the temp outside rarely dipped below 75 at night. The average temp for the billing period as shown on the bill was 79F. 4 degrees higher than last year.

 

[ziggy29]

Egads, I just got my electric bill for the 30 days ending around August 18th. A record high, 50% higher than the previous record high one year ago at this time. It is the price to remain cool and comfortable when the temp outside rarely dipped below 75 at night.

This month is really going to be the test of how much my new metal roof is saving in energy costs. We've gone from below average temperatures for most of the long "summer" to above average, triple digits in almost every day of this billing cycle (105 high expected today, which means it will likely be more like 108 if history is a guide). A quick read of the meter a couple days ago shows that this bill will hurt a lot more than the others earlier in the year, but it still looks like usage is down a bit from last year even with the same thermostat setting (78).

 

[audreyh1]

Wow - some of you guys really keep your houses cold!

78 during the day, 80 when we leave the house.

Audrey

 

[Sarah in SC]

Yeah, Audrey that is what I was thinking. I set the thermostat at 80 when we are there, 85 when we leave. But if DH is home alone, I'm sure he runs it down to something extravagant, like 73!

All electric house, 1500 sq feet, 7 years old (I insulated it myself) and highest bill ever was $300. Lowest was $60. Average of $110.

 

[Andre1969]

I usually keep it set around 74. I've tried 73, but then I start getting too much condensation and worry about mold. I have a 2 1/2 ton heat pump that works fine for the downstairs, but is a little weak upstairs. On really hot days, say, it gets to 100 outside, and it'll creep up to 81-82 inside. I put a ceiling fan in my bedroom which helps, but this summer I gave up and dug one of the old window units out of the garage and put it back in. I usually cut the window unit back to around 78 or so during the day when nobody's home, but then crank it to 74-75 once I'm home.

 

[kramer]

Here in Medellin, Colombia, there is no need for A/C or heating. No places have either, even the richest. The average high/low year around is about 82/62. Also, part of each day tends to be overcast.

Kramer

 

[Eagle43]

80 degrees during the day and 73 at nite. Got a bill for $236 for last month.

BTW: I recall my New Orleans Cajun relatives keeping their houses cold... very cold. Dunno why.

 

[NW-Bound]

Here in Medellin, Colombia, there is no need for A/C or heating. No places have either, even the richest. The average high/low year around is about 82/62. Also, part of each day tends to be overcast.

Kramer

I just looked this up: Medellin, 6 deg latitude, around 5000 ft.

Quite near the equator, and not very high elevation. Yet, very mild climate. Who would have thunk? And the partial overcast sky is nice too. Here in the SouthWest, the clear blue sky means brutal sun rays, all day, all the time. Too much of a good thing.

 

[samclem]

I just looked this up: Medellin, 6 deg latitude, around 5000 ft.

Quite near the equator, and not very high elevation.

I guess 5000 ft isn't high by some standards, but I'm sure it has a big impact on the temps. The dry adiabatic lapse rate is approx 5.5 deg F per thousand feet, so those average daily highs of 82 deg F would be well over 100 deg F at sea level.

 

[kramer]

Yes, in Colombia you can choose your climate (twice the size of Texas). They call it a continent within a country because they have everything. There are nice places to choose from (various elevations).

Personally, I prefer a bit warmer climate than Medellin, probably closer to 1200 meters, but the weather here is definitely great. There is a lot of rain, 60 inches per year, with no distinct dry season.

Also, the temps tend to stay in a narrow range. I remember looking once and seeing that it has never gotten below 50 degrees in modern history here. I am not sure about the high. But if it gets to something like 86 degrees, people will think there is a heat wave, etc. Of course, I try to explain to them that they have almost the best weather on the planet

Also, there are very few bugs, so people don't really need screens. Part of most people's housing is open to the outside air and same goes for restaurants.

Of course, on the way home last night I happened upon a murder scene with a guy who had been shot right there on the ground, a few meters behind police tape (there was a shootout between criminals). You can't have it all!

Kramer

 

[HFWR]

Yes, in Colombia you can choose your climate (twice the size of Texas). They call it a continent within a country because they have everything. There are nice places to choose from (various elevations).

Personally, I prefer a bit warmer climate than Medellin, probably closer to 1200 meters, but the weather here is definitely great. There is a lot of rain, 60 inches per year, with no distinct dry season.

Also, the temps tend to stay in a narrow range. I remember looking once and seeing that it has never gotten below 50 degrees in modern history here. I am not sure about the high. But if it gets to something like 86 degrees, people will think there is a heat wave, etc. Of course, I try to explain to them that they have almost the best weather on the planet

Also, there are very few bugs, so people don't really need screens. Part of most people's housing is open to the outside air and same goes for restaurants.

Of course, on the way home last night I happened upon a murder scene with a guy who had been shot right there on the ground, a few meters behind police tape (there was a shootout between criminals). You can't have it all!

Kramer

How convenient for them to shoot him right behind the police tape...

 

[lucija]

Wow... you guys have some cheap electricity rates! We're paying $.15/kWh.

We're in the mid-Atlantic region and keep AC between 78 and 83 (depending on activity levels); fans are in just about every room. If we're expecting a bunch of people, the setting is lowered to 74 (nothing like a bunch of people warming up the place).

I like warmer weather and fresh air (humidity, not so much) and tend to turn off AC and open windows during the day every chance I get.... the temp inside can easily creep up to 85 or more before I notice it's getting hot. Then again, I spend all day in front of the computer (working remotely from home), so it's not like I am exerting myself physically.

Also, we keep AC vents open only on the top level (and close ones on the 1st floor and basement); our thermostat is on the 1st floor. The benefit is an even distribution of temperature with the upper floor being about 1 deg warmer than 1st floor.

 

[mh]

No AC for me. I'm In Southern california (ventura county)
There are a couple weeks during the year when it would be nice
but i have shade trees all around the house as well as a roof overhang
that keeps out a lot of direct sun, so i can do without those two weeks
a fan works well enough for those two weeks

My moms house is less well shaded & less than a mile away from mine
and there are times where AC is necessary there but i'm fine at my place.
So the immediate environment around the house seems to make a big difference