What's your AC cost?

[slag]

My total electric bill last month was $413. Summer.. in Kansas, with kids home from school playing on computers, watching TV, etc. We also have a hot tub that runs with a circulation pump.

 

[Linux23]

WTF? 79 is "kinda cold" in what world exactly? I'd keep mine at 65 if I weren't so cheap and do keep it at 65 in the winter. If it gets over 75, I can't sleep.

Let me clarify. When I have the ceiling fan running with the AC set to 79, that wind chill effect causes some discomfort. So much so that I have to grab a comforter.

On my ecobee I have 3 temp sensors in several rooms and in the evening I only have the living room controlling the setpoint and at bedtime I average two bedroom sensors to control setpoint.

So in short, the evenings the living room is at temp and the rooms are below temp then at bedtime the rooms are at temp and the living room is way hotter. I'd recommend the ecobee 3 to anyone who wants to take control over their HVAC.

 

[FeuerFrei]

No cost. I live sans AC. In Texas. Yeah.

The AC system has fallen into disrepair from sheer neglect. Wouldn't work if I tried it.

 

[pete6032]

My total electric bill last month was $413. Summer.. in Kansas, with kids home from school playing on computers, watching TV, etc. We also have a hot tub that runs with a circulation pump.

Jeez I live in Chicago in a 1,000 square foot apartment and my electric bill was $55 last month. During the fall my bill is around $30.

 

[HumblePie]

3,100 sq ft home here in South Texas. I keep my house at 69 all the time. Run about $160 a month right now in the summer. Drops a bit in winter as one might expect.

 

[RockinZ28]

78 or so isn't so bad if you're in underwear only watching tv/playing games. Minute you start doing any kind of housework or put on clothes, it becomes too hot. Probably couldn't sleep like that either. Bed is in the basement where it's ~ 70 when the top level is 78.

 

[kranky]

Costs us about $40/month to run our whole house AC in the summer.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Let me clarify. When I have the ceiling fan running with the AC set to 79, that wind chill effect causes some discomfort. So much so that I have to grab a comforter.

On my ecobee I have 3 temp sensors in several rooms and in the evening I only have the living room controlling the setpoint and at bedtime I average two bedroom sensors to control setpoint.

So in short, the evenings the living room is at temp and the rooms are below temp then at bedtime the rooms are at temp and the living room is way hotter. I'd recommend the ecobee 3 to anyone who wants to take control over their HVAC.

I'll be installing an ecobee 3 and integrating it into my HA systems soon in all likelihood. However, the issue is that I have a large two story house and the AC is probably undersized to begin with. My office, for example, suffers from low air flow so I had to get the portable AC to supplement the central air in that room - ecobee's remote sensors won't be able to help compensate for that due to the low air flow. My entire upstairs can be 5-10 degrees warmer than the downstairs, so if I move too far above 72 on the thermostat, my master bedroom is unbearable.

 

[Mike64]

Jeez I live in Chicago in a 1,000 square foot apartment and my electric bill was $55 last month. During the fall my bill is around $30.

I wish... I don't actually know how many square feet my apartment is but it's a "decent-sized" (for NYC) 2 bedroom, and my last bill $80 with only the most minimal of AC usage (I have ceiling fans everywhere, and like fresh air...)

 

[rh71]

I'm at home alone every day and so it's a waste to put the CAC on during the day. We only use it after 4pm @ 79F and set it at 80F for overnight (which is sufficient with ceiling fans in the bedrooms). We hardly notice an increase in the bill... maybe +$10/mo. if that.

We have one of the highest electric rates in the country yet our electric bill is only $116/mo. last month. I can only imagine if we dropped it to 75F all day every day. It has a hard enough time driving it from 84F down to 79F - takes a few hours.

 

[AznAnarchy99]

I don't pay electricity in my rent and my landlords are dicks so I run it all day to keep my room a cool 72.

 

[Brainonska511]

I have a 6000 BTU window a/c that I only run at night when I'm home and it costs me $0/month since electricity is included in my rent.

 

[Puffnstuff]

Can you access your electricity provider account online and see a usage breakdown? Most allow for it and then you can see if your usage picked up at the same time you installed the unit. What temp is right is a matter of personal preference but in my last house with the air handler drawing from multiple rooms around the house the air stayed within 1 degree anywhere in the house so setting my temp at 78 worked great. The air handler had a variable speed fan so it would adjust itself and move air without the heat pump getting involved which saved money. That unit only had a 14 seer rating on it but worked very well.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Yeah checking online with provider is probably best bet as you see it how they see it, so even if meter is not properly calibrated or something, you'll get the most "accurate" value of cost. Run it for an hour on the hour, and try to not run anything else in that time frame, mark down the day/time then check online later. Do this during the on peak time, to get the worse case scenario.

 

[Linux23]

78 or so isn't so bad if you're in underwear only watching tv/playing games. Minute you start doing any kind of housework or put on clothes, it becomes too hot. Probably couldn't sleep like that either. Bed is in the basement where it's ~ 70 when the top level is 78.

well if you're an overweight slob who doesn't exercise daily then yeah, you'll need more cowbell (lower the temp).

 

[Linux23]

I'll be installing an ecobee 3 and integrating it into my HA systems soon in all likelihood. However, the issue is that I have a large two story house and the AC is probably undersized to begin with. My office, for example, suffers from low air flow so I had to get the portable AC to supplement the central air in that room - ecobee's remote sensors won't be able to help compensate for that due to the low air flow. My entire upstairs can be 5-10 degrees warmer than the downstairs, so if I move too far above 72 on the thermostat, my master bedroom is unbearable.

have you ever considered those automated vents that open and close when a room hits their setpoint?

 

[Mai72]

I keep my AC running between 66-69. It depends. I don't get the electric bill per se. My landlord tells me what I owe and I pay it. Normally it's about $40 a month. Heat is free. I only pay about $650 a month. It's small but very clean, and the low rent allows me to put money to the side.

I can afford the cost. I was just curious and was thinking about my first AC bill. When I lived in Thailand the AC was cheap. Same in Korea.

 

[Red Squirrel]

have you ever considered those automated vents that open and close when a room hits their setpoint?

It's crossed my mind to actually design something like this, there would be dampers for each room that are controlled by a servo, and then a bypass damper at the furnace to let some air of the supply go back in the return, if a lot of supply dampers are closed. The air that is coming out of the ones where the dampers are open would then be hotter/colder depending on if furnace or AC is running. Could have different setpoints for each room, even. Basically it would get desired rooms to the right temp faster, and probably run the system less if you set other rooms less. If using servos you could even limit supply to other rooms without stopping it completely.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

have you ever considered those automated vents that open and close when a room hits their setpoint?

Yes, but I'd want the Keen vents to integrate with my HA stuff and they're a bit expensive right now.

 

[vshah]

i run 3 units 24/7. including everything else in the apartment my electricity bill is ~150ish during the summer

 

[vshah]

It's crossed my mind to actually design something like this, there would be dampers for each room that are controlled by a servo, and then a bypass damper at the furnace to let some air of the supply go back in the return, if a lot of supply dampers are closed. The air that is coming out of the ones where the dampers are open would then be hotter/colder depending on if furnace or AC is running. Could have different setpoints for each room, even. Basically it would get desired rooms to the right temp faster, and probably run the system less if you set other rooms less. If using servos you could even limit supply to other rooms without stopping it completely.

https://keenhome.io/

 

[Spacehead]

I have 2 6000btu window units in my living room/kitchen area. I usually only run them when it gets very humid. I've never noticed a spike in my electric bill & i've had these since 2012.

This week will be a long run for them. It's been 90F & 90%+ humidity the last 3 days & will be till over the weekend so they're running 24/7.

My electric bill averages $65/month the past 2-3 years

 

[Red Squirrel]

well if you're an overweight slob who doesn't exercise daily then yeah, you'll need more cowbell (lower the temp).

Not sure what weight has anything to do with it. I'm pretty small by most peoples' standards and anything about 75 I start to sweat and not be very comfortable, especially if doing any kind of physical work. 70 and lower is the best. Though I find the temp difference alone can make a big difference in comfort, if it's like 80 outside and house is 75 it still feels good when you walk in, but then you sit down and st

https://keenhome.io/

Neat... but it's probably cloud based, so I'd end up designing my own system anyway. That's what I hate about all the "smart" stuff that comes out, it's all cloud based and proprietary, and in some cases even a security nightmare. I rather have something I control within my LAN only and can easily integrate with other custom systems. If I want to remote in, that's what VPN is for.

 

[Mike64]

Not sure what weight has anything to do with it. I'm pretty small by most peoples' standards and anything about 75 I start to sweat and not be very comfortable, especially if doing any kind of physical work.

I don't know what the medical/biological explanation is (I don't think it's as simplistic as having extra "insulation"), but overweight people do typically feel the heat more than others. But I'm not overweight, and I also hate it when the temperature goes above the mid-70s (what can I say, I sweat like a horse at the drop of a hat, always have, and I don't like it!) I feel it, but can also deal with Northeast US cold temperatures no problem, and I love the long days of Summer, but I hate the heat and humidity...

 

[Svnla]

Last month (July) was about $85, I am sure this month will be over $100. So darn hot and humid down here during summer.