Last updated on March 10th, 2024 at 03:42 pm

Turning up the thermostat in summer to 76 or 78 degrees F can reduce the stress on your A/C unit by as much as 10-15%.

In the same way that turning down a thermostat in the winter months can save on your heating costs, turning up the thermostat in the warmer months will save you money on your cooling bills. The technical reason remains the same. Keep in mind that air always moves from warm to cool temperatures. The greater difference there is between warm and cool air, the faster it will move. Keeping a house much cooler than the surrounding air will keep additional stress on your a/c unit. It has to work harder to maintain a colder temperature.

Aside from this aspect, in warm climates or seasons when the temperature regularly reaches higher temperatures, the ac unit will have to work harder, or more specifically, longer to cool the air in your home to the thermostat temperature. And the longer the unit runs, the more it costs. You will surely see the change in your next electric bill.

Turning your thermostat up will actually save you money because your a/c won’t turn on as often, since it doesn’t have to run more to cool the air.

It’s a good idea to find a happy medium when it comes to your thermostat in all seasons, and set it for good. One argument for a programmable thermostat is it allows you to set temperatures accordingly. Basically, just set it and forget it until the season changes.

If you are still too warm in your house, you can try making sure the windows are covered (especially the ones the have the sun beating on them all day) since solar radiation can heat the air in your home very easily. You should also be running your ceiling fans. If your home is still too warm or if it seems the A/C is running non stop even after raising the temperature, there may be a problem with the unit or it may be undersized for the home/room.