Air Conditioning comfort zone - Page 2

jannabelle1 · ‎09-12-2010

We keep the heat set at 72 - 75 depending on the winter temps. In the summer, we have high humidity/heat and sometimes set it around 72, but normally we set it at 74 or 75. We have a lot of trees around us, but when it starts getting hot here I keep the blinds closed on the windows and sliding doors - that helps a lot. My problem is striking a balance with hubby....he tends to set the thermostat lower with the AC and I turn it up a few degrees. It's a back and forth thing all summer!

RedTop · ‎09-01-2010

72 is the magic number year round for my family here in southern West Virginia. We only change the thermostat from heat to cool, or to EmHeat during our arctic cold blasts.

SeaMaiden · ‎03-10-2010

@Icegoddess wrote:
@SeaMaiden wrote:
@Icegoddess Do you live in a warm area year round? We live in the Seattle area so pretty much it will just be running on the hot weeks we get about 4 months out of the year.
@SeaMaiden, no, I am in N AL, so long, hot summers, but still have several months of winter. We have a heat pump, and the biggest problem is they don't handle temperature extremes well either direction. The other issue in winter is, the air coming out of the register is not warm. I would prefer gas, but it's not available here. Just up the street, but not here, and none of the neighbors are interested in ponying up to run the line, although I doubt we would use it for heat at least for quite some time since our units are fairly new. But, I would love to have a gas stove and a generator.

@Icegoddess That is concerning about the air not pushing out warm from the registers in the winter....shouldn’t your furnace kick in when the temp outside is too cool for the heat pump to work efficiently? Have you had your furnace and heat pump checked out recentlyto make sure things are running properly?

GenXmuse · ‎05-15-2016

@shaggygirl wrote:
Heat in winter: 70 daytime - 64 night
Airco in summer: 68 day & night

Sounds exactly like my thermostat

SeaMaiden · ‎03-10-2010

I appreciate all the responses! perhaps I will try turning it up to 74 and see how that feels....plus see how the electric bill is this summer.. and go from there.

NickNack · ‎03-10-2010

I keep my A/C on 72 in the warm months.

The Bluebird Carries The Sky On His Back"
-Henry David Thoreau

PickyPicky3 · ‎10-22-2018

@SeaMaiden , Is this your first heat pump? I missed that. I moved into a tiny house 4 years ago with a heat pump and went through a big learning period. Heat pumps are very different than a furnace and central air. The air that comes out of your vents isn't very cold or hot. As a result, it takes a long time to change temperature or dehumidify.

When I had a regular furnace and central air, I would raise and lower the temperature frequently. Like everyone does. That doesn't work with a heat pump. You'll use too much electricity. Just find the temperature you like and keep it set. I used to open the windows a lot. That doesn't work either. Only in spring and fall when the heat pump is off do I air the place out. Once it's on for the season to heat or cool I just let it be. After I learned this my electric bills really dropped.

On my system if you raise the thermostat more than 2 degrees when heating the back-up electric coil system kicks on. Watch your electric meter spin! Do it gradually or pay the price.

Do I like my heat pump? Absolutely not. But like others, I have no choice, Good luck!

Carmie · ‎10-25-2010

We have a heat pump by choice. We put one in when we built our home about 31 years ago and got a new updated model a few years ago.

I used to have gas heat at the house I live in before, I hated it...way too expensive to heat the house and the electricity to cool was expensive too.

We keep the heat on 73 all winter long, but turn it down at while we sleep to 68 at night...it gets hot in the bedrooms. Our electric back up heat does not turn of if we raise the temp by two degrees. It only turns on if it is extremely cold outside..below zero and usually only at night. No problems during the daytime when the sun is out.

When it gets hot out we turn the AC on and keep it on all summer, even if we are away for weeks at a time. Usually the temp is set at 75, but sometimes I will turn it down to 72 if it is super hot outside. If we are away for a week or more, we turn it to 78.

The secret is to keep the humidity out of the house. Once it is no longer humid inside, you can make it warmer and be comfortable.

The AC on a heat pump is really inexpensive to run, we love it and don't have to worry about big bills.

Our winter heat bills are lower than our friends who have gas or oil heat. I wouldn't hesitate to get a heat pump. We live in PA, which has extreme temperatures...both hot and cold.

Enjoy your new comfort this summer. You're gonna love it.

Eileen in Virginia · ‎08-25-2010

We set ours at 72. That’s fine most of the time, but we’ll lower it a degree or 2 if we really need to cool down after exercising or working outside.

Icegoddess · ‎03-19-2010

@SeaMaiden wrote:
@Icegoddess wrote:
@SeaMaiden wrote:
@Icegoddess Do you live in a warm area year round? We live in the Seattle area so pretty much it will just be running on the hot weeks we get about 4 months out of the year.
@SeaMaiden, no, I am in N AL, so long, hot summers, but still have several months of winter. We have a heat pump, and the biggest problem is they don't handle temperature extremes well either direction. The other issue in winter is, the air coming out of the register is not warm. I would prefer gas, but it's not available here. Just up the street, but not here, and none of the neighbors are interested in ponying up to run the line, although I doubt we would use it for heat at least for quite some time since our units are fairly new. But, I would love to have a gas stove and a generator.
@Icegoddess That is concerning about the air not pushing out warm from the registers in the winter....shouldn’t your furnace kick in when the temp outside is too cool for the heat pump to work efficiently? Have you had your furnace and heat pump checked out recentlyto make sure things are running properly?

@SeaMaiden, that's just the way heat pumps work. There is no furnace. And I know they don't like you to change the temps, but I can't sleep at night if it's too hot, so turn it down at night and up in the morning. We have the folks that installed the system come out twice a year to maintain it. The same guy always comes too, so we basically have our own personal heating/air guy.