Summer thermostat setbacks and recovery time

I know people that they'll turn their thermostat off whenever they're going to be gone from the house for a while, you know, whether they're going to work or they're going on an extended vacation. Please, don't do that. When you get back to the house and you want to turn that thermostat back to your comfortable temperature setting, it's going to take it so long, use so much energy, and cause that system to work so much harder to cool that house back down to where you [music] like it or to warm the house back up to where you like it. Many energy companies really only recommend a 4° swing in your temperature. So, if you want your house at 72° while you're there and you're leaving the house, don't set your temperature anywhere above 76° or don't set it to heat anywhere below 68°. Young Rose. >> [singing and music]

A lot of times we see homeowners, a well-meaning, well-intended homeowners, make the mistake of cranking the thermostat down even if it hasn't satisfied the temperature. Your thermostat is not a gas pedal. We're not pulling F1 out here. Nobody's winning a race by cranking the thermostat down and getting it to set point faster. That's not how a thermostat works. It is not a you know, a throttle that we can just just get after, you know? So, the thermostat is just going to be telling the system, "Hey, we got to keep running." Or hey, "We don't have to keep running." There's no speed endeavor here and setting it lower only makes it work harder on those hot summer days, thus increasing the probability of a breakdown. Because longer run times means higher probability for a breakdown. So, don't just drop the thermostat down below set point. If it's not reaching set point, that's when you should call in the pros and really try to figure out, "Hey, what's going on here?"

Darren yarro owner and founder of yarro and Suns Heating and Cooling and plumbing joins us this morning on Fox Weather First to talk about the budget Darren good to see you thank you for your time obviously things are really expensive now more than any other year and when it comes to AC money is hard to come by that is true yeah everything just gets more expensive every every day you know but we do have some things that we can do to uh uh kind of help mitigate that and keep the cost down with your air conditioner I do have a big question for you Darren when it comes to the temperature on our thermostat what's better you know bumping up the temperature just slightly when we're not home or turning it off when we're not home taking it up a couple of degrees is fine you know but you take it up too much during the course of the day whenever you get home it has to run for so long to catch up you know so if you uh you know if you turn it off during the day and you get home at 5 or 6 o' you know it's going to run until you go to bed before it cools back down you know so I would say just take it up a couple of degrees

Listen, turning your AC off is actually costing you money. The New York Times just put this out and honestly, they're right. Turning your AC off when you leave is costing you more money than you realize and and frankly, here's why. Your home turns into an oven while you're gone and well, your system has to work harder to drag the temperature back down. It runs harder, runs longer and often we're asking it to do so whenever peak demand, meaning electricity's more expensive. That recovery spike is costing you more in the long run if you had just left it on. So, what's the actual move? Well, OG&E recommends don't just adjust your thermostat's off. Actually change it by, you know, about 4°. So, if you're having it at 70, bump it to 74 when you leave. That's the sweet spot. That's the proven savings. That's where no damage to your efficiency is going to occur. Go past that and you're costing yourself more money. So, throw it on a schedule, work with a smart thermostat. You literally never have to think about it again if you set up the system properly and you can have the best of both worlds. Ideal savings, ideal comfort and making sure that your system runs efficiently as long as possible. Here we go, guys. >> Your home. >> [singing] [music]

The thermostat's not a gas pedal. So, if you set it lower, it doesn't mean that it's going to accelerate there faster. With an air conditioner, that thermostat is really just a set point. So, it's going to keep chugging along and keep doing its thing, but it's not going to get there faster. If we're setting it below what our desired temperature is, we're actually just asking more out of a system that, you know, if it's an older system, if it's a system that's 10 to 12 years old, if we're asking that to run longer than maybe we need it to to keep us comfortable, well then we're increasing the probability of breakdowns occurring. So, don't treat your thermostat like a gas pedal, set it at what you want it set it at and just leave it alone. Hope you enjoyed the video. If you have questions, be sure to drop them in the comments. We'd love to hear from you. And if you want to learn more about our transparent pricing, click the link below and you can get an online estimate in just a few seconds. Your home. >> [music]

Here's how your air conditioner can save you money. Air conditioners operate at different efficiencies. There's single-stage, two-stage, and variable. Single-stage operates like a light switch. It's either on or it's off. So, whether the temperature outside is 100° or 75°, if your thermostat's calling for 70, it's going to operate at 100% capacity. Two-stage, however, works at 50% or 100%. So, on a 100° day, probably going to operate at 100%, but on a 75° day, it might operate at 50%. Variable capacity operates on different levels. So, you have 20%, 30%, 40%, 50% variability or capacity. And if it can satisfy that thermostat by operating at one of those lower capacities, it's going to do so. So, that's how your air conditioner can save you money during some of the hottest months in the summer.

I just read this New York Times article that says it's okay to let your AC run all day even if you're not home. And you know what? They are absolutely right in most cases. So if you have a single stage system onoff switch or it's either off or 100% on, I would still say that you need a programmable thermostat to kind of variable that set point a little bit to save the most energy. However, if you have a variable capacity, variable speed system, uh you're good to sit there and just let that thing limp along all day long. That way it's at the perfect set point no matter what time you might arrive at home. Also, Honeywell did a great job with these thermostats. But if you're still rocking one of these thermostats, give us a call. It's time to upgrade to the Yarro home thermostat.

Program your thermostat. Have it set to start cooling your home off right before you get home for the evening. And you will save a little bit of money on your utility bills as well as maximize your homecom program. Your putting game tough. Finally.

Hey, y'all. This is Stephen McGarry from Own Sons. Y'all saw this New York Times article going around and they're right. As a service manager, I get this question all the time. Should you turn your AC off when you leave the house? The short answer is no. So, when your home heats up while you're gone, your system has to work way harder to recover. And that spike in energy use ends up costing you more than if you just left it running. Here's what I tell all my customers. OG&E recommends no more than a 4° difference when you leave. If you keep your home at 70, bump it up to 74 on your way out. That's it. Anything more than that and your system's fighting an uphill battle to catch back up and it's your wallet that feels it. Get a smart thermostat, set a schedule, let it handle it automatically. That's what I do. This has been your service manager minute. Love y'all. God bless. >> Y'alls >> [music]