97BossHammer

I have been leaving the thermostat set on 80 degree's....night and day. Of course during the day it's 95 degree's here and the A/C is coming on and off all day long. Last summer we cut the air off during the day......then when we got home it took a long time for it to finally cool down. My unit is about 3yrs old.....never has been cleaned, etc and it seems to be running fine. Here are some questions that I just don't know

1. How often to have it checked, yearly - or only when there's a prob.

2. Set the thermostat at a certain temp - or leave it off during the day.

Wally

iTrader: (1)

I have always cleaned the condenser coils every spring before it gets hot....just vacume out the leaves and dirt etc...
You may want to just have it inpsected and maybe tuned up with some freon if it needs it.

As for the thrmostat....i went and bought a digital programambe one.....it turns the system off about 1/2 hour before i leave for work in the morning and turns back on about 45min before i get home.....saves on bills that way. dont need to heat or cool the house during the day if no ones there to use it!

Cord

iTrader: (2)

In all honesty, there isn't much to maintain on the newer units. Everybody sells a maintenance package, but it's like performing a tune up on a new car. There's nothing to tune! They'll check the line pressure and top you off if it's low on freon (or 134a). Other than that, the units will basically run until they break where as you replace them. Just keep the bushes trimmed back so that the fan can draw air through the coil. Try to keep the leaves and crud off the unit, but don't freek out if it gets dirty. These things are alot simpler than they look.

I would try using a thermostat that can do a setback. Raise the temp during the day by about 5 degrees and then have it drop back down just before you come home. The reason the unit takes so long to cool down is because it has too cool all the contents of the house. As you have noticed there is a lot of thermal mass in a home. By setting the temp a little higher the unit won't have to work so hard to increase the temperature differential between the inside and the outside. So you'll see some savings over a lower setting and it won't take as long to cool the home down.

NASTY HABIT

Hey.....it's not a bad Idea to have it checked out once a year..if you know a company you can trust ....drain line blown out....air handler coil checked for cleanliness ..although i could tell you how to do a check yourself...the most important thing is to keep a clean filter in it. and blow out the drain line at least once a year. other than that unless you have a leak ...you'll have no problems

as far as the temp setting.. A good digital stat is the way I like to go . maintian a certian temp 78-80 while you are gone and bring the unit on a 1/2 hour to an hour before you get home so it has time to recover and be nice and chilled when you get there .

NASTY HABIT

guess we were all

writing the same thing at the same time....



yea what they said !!

Sydwayz

iTrader: (1)

Electronic thermostat is a GREAT investment, and installs very easily. If you can change the battery in your car, you can install it.

Danny Usnik

I agree with Cord. Once I set my thermostat I do not touch it. When the temperature outside goes below that I open the windows. Everything in your home holds heat, drywall, furniture, carpet, insulation, wood, etc. When you get all that stuff to the temp you like, then it's easy and cheaper to keep it there.


The other thing I do is not wait to long to put it on in the beginning of the hot season. I like to keep mine at 72, so when it starts to get about 77 or 78 outside, I turn it on. Everything that holds heat is already close to 72. If its gets cooler out in the evening it's not going to run.


97Boss, you said you keep yours at 80 night and day. Is that cool enough or do I just like mine like a freezer? What temp do the rest of you guys like your house to be?

DU

Chris288

74-76

Cord

iTrader: (2)

My wife used to compain that the house was too cold. She'd go to the thermostat and proclaim that it's only 69 in here! (Heating season mind you) This would be followed up by the burner turning on. I fixed the problem when I took the thermostat cover off and twisted the temperature thermometer. The next time she looked at it, she was all happy because it now read 75. Moral of the story: Don't worry what the number says. It's not important. Set the thing to a setting that feels good to you.

Danny Usnik

Cord,

Nice move, never saw that one comming. Just wish I could do that with the speedo.