your opinions on air conditioning just at night vs all day

[3goodeggs]

We try to wait until the second week of June before we turn on the air conditioning.
We have been trying to conserve money as much as humanly possible and I feel guilty running the air.
It is hot and humid in Florida, and I feel justified in having air at night, but I do not know if we should run it during the day.
What are your opinions? Would we use more energy trying to cool the house down each evening or would we save energy just running it at night?

 

[7L Farm]

I can live without heat but not without the A/C no way. Its to hot here. Mine is set at 73 degrees. My thoughts are it would be hard on the A/C unit to try & get the temp down if you switch it on & off. So, I just leave it at one temp.

 

[rockytop]

We live in North Florida. I keep the air on all day @ around 80 degrees & turn it down in the evenings to about 78 degrees. Our house is about 2100 square feet & our electric bill was $146.00 this month & $135.00 last month. I do everything I can to keep my bill down. I used to run all my ceiling fans 24/7. After talking to the electric company I only run them when I am in the room. It made a big difference. So back to your questions - I believe that it saves money to run you AC during the day at a higher temp verses have to cool the house down completely each night.
I might also add that we run a large fridge, water cooler and a large freezer in the house. Outside we run a fridge in the garage, a fish pond pump, dehumidifier in the RV & 3 fans in the chicken coops. I believe that I am doing everything that I can to lower my bill.
At the moment it is 85.2 outside & 79.3 inside. The AC is set @ 78 and it is very comfortable.

 

[redhen]

Having lived in Florida...I personally would have the air on 24/7 in the warm months.
Some people don't use/need it though...I guess its really just personal preference ..if your not hot..don't turn it on...if you are hot then turn it on..

 

[redhen]

Here in NE we can get away with running air during the day..and turning off at night. Unless are in a bad heat wave..thats usually what we do..

 

[thaiturkey]

Our climate is similar to yours, hot and humid. I have spent time in Ocala so I have some experience.

A/c is OK for short periods in cars, malls, hotels and 'planes but I think it's unhealthy in homes. It dehydrates and that can be very debilitating. We wired the home for it but didn't install it. Natural airflow and fans are enough, we have found. Our home is two storey and open plan. To use a/c, we would have to close all of the exterior and interior doors and close off the dog leg staircase with doors and panelling. It seems crazy to shut ourselves in rooms, cutting out natural air, just to spend more money and risk our health with a/c.

Most of our casement exterior doors are permanently open. Security is provided by metal doors with grilles and bug mesh. The same applied to windows. Most rooms have ceiling fans and some portable fans. That is enough.

We also have stone, tile and wooden floors throughout with no carpets. That makes a great difference to comfort indoors. The house is also designed to keep the direct sunlight off the openings.

For night time, we leave a fan on over the bed if the outside air is still hot. I don't bother much with the duvet either.

There are floor fans that have water or ice containers at the bottom. They blow out a nice cool breeze. I think that you would need ventilation to the outdoors, though, to avoid a build up of moisture in the room.

Most of us here put ice in our beer here too!

 

[3goodeggs]

Thank you for your replies. I am surprised by the ceiling fan energy consumption, but it makes sense. I try to keep the air at 84 but my husband wants it at 76. I will compromise and just keep it at 80.
I am sure there is some equation for optimal energy savings, But for now I will just increase it a few degrees when we leave the house.
I hate to hassle with my husband about things like this. He is such a good guy he deserves cool air. but when he isn't here. I can't see cooling the place down for no one.

We work in greenhouses and in the hot open air all day. Other than skin cancer, we are definitely the wholesome open air and sunshine advocates. We Just need to sleep off the exhaustion at night.

 

[thaiturkey]

Fans are cheaper to buy and run than a/c. Humidity isn't a problem if the air is moving to cool you. At least, fans reduce the amount of time you would use a/c.

 

[3goodeggs]

We most definitely run the fans when we are inside, but when we go away, I would assume they would be like a light bulb. And should be turned off until our return.

 

[hemet dennis]

The cost of A/C will mostly depend on how your house is insulated. If you're leaving for an hour or so it's better to leave it on. It will cost you more to cool it down again. A/C's work best when set at one temp. and not changed all the time. It takes a lot more money to cool down a hot house then it does to keep a house cool.