AC on constantly!! (Phoenix: homes, to buy, tenants)

[mortimer]

Hot in AZ responded:

> condenser is outside on the ground, and the other half is upstairs ...

Not a problem there.

> ... first floor is an uncooled garage, ...

Big problem there.

> ... upper two floors are living space.

Bad for checking air leaks.

> We've got western exposure, too, about 5 windows ...

Also a problem.

You could put up visqueen sheets over your windows to prevent
leaks and seal up the ceiling in the garage by tacking up insulation, or
you could move next year. If your cooling bill is more than $200, this
month you've got a substandard place. It *should* be less than $100.

Steve-o warned:

> If youre expecting it to cool down on 10/1, youve got another
> thing coming. Its been 100 degrees and over in early October.

Insert your definition of "cool" in the proper location.

The average daytime high in Phoenix on October 1st is 96 with the
record being 108 (in 1980), but the average nightime low is a nice
69, so you don't have those hours and hours of temperatures around
and over 100.

October 1st is substantially more comfortable than it is on
September 1st even though the average temperature is only
7 degrees lower for the high. (It is 9 deg lower for the low.)

The length of daylight is more than an hour less on Oct 1
than it is on Sep 1.

[mortimer]

Bill reported:

> ... lived in Chicago ... heat on in every month except ...

It's just like Phoenix in reverse. If you have crappy insulation,
you'll run the utilities more.

Bill could also be a cold wussy -- I don't know.

Me? I'm a hot wussy. I shovel snow in my shorts and T-shirt,
but you couldn't pay me enough to wear a suit to work.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by Bill-

I lived in Chicago for 23 years and had the heat on in every month except June, July and August.

Odd. Its a week into September and still in the upper 80s, and this is not a unusual thing at all. I only run the heat for the few chilly days in May and a few in October. From November until late April the heat is usually on, but many days are warm enough to not run it at all.

[Bummer]

Originally Posted by Hot in AZ

My husband and I just moved to Phoenix and are getting used to our new A/C-dependent life. We are beginning to wonder if the A/C at our apartment is not working up to par, even for this hot time of the year. In order to come home to 78 degrees after work in the evenings, we have to leave the A/C unit running constantly all day long (i.e. it doesn't reach 78 degrees and then click on and off to hold it at that temp). It is not that the thermostat is broken because if we set it at 85+ it will click on and off, but in order to get the temp at 78, the A/C has to be running all the time. If we wanted to keep it at 75 we couldn't because the A/C is already on all the time and can only get to 78. We've had an A/C guy look at the unit and he says it is working fine. But, keeping the A/C running 24/7 just to maintain 78 degrees seems a little extreme. We haven't gotten our first electricity bill, but are nervous that it is going to be outrageous. Is this kind of extreme A/C use normal around here?? Many thanks.

No "HVAC Expert" here, Hot in AZ, however, compared to my home . . . SOMETHING IS DEFINITELY NOT RIGHT.

My home is approximately 1400 sq ft (granted only one level) and my a/c runs about 5 to 10 minutes twice an hour with the thermostat set at 75 degrees. The "total electric" bill runs about 100 bucks a month (give or take 5) during the summer months and only in the $60's otherwise.

I have a feeling your compressor is extremely underpowered and/or has lost efficiency due to age.

[Magnum Mike]

When you turn the A/C on and how long you leave it running, depends on several factors, mainly your own climate preferences. If you like it cold in your house, then you're obviously going to have the A/C running from probably mid April until November. On average, I run mine from mid May until early October.

Pretty soon, it'll start cooling down enough at night and through early morning, you'll be able to turn it off and open the windows.

[Leaving AZ]

Originally Posted by Hot in AZ

Thanks, mortimer. We've got a lot of things working against us---it's a three story townhome, 1200 sq. ft. The condenser is outside on the ground, and the other half is upstairs in the hall in the third floor. The first floor is an uncooled garage, and the upper two floors are living space. We've got western exposure, too, about 5 windows that just bake in the afternoons.

I like the idea about checking for cool air leaking out, but all of our living space windows are up on the second and third floors.

Yea, we are counting the days (and our pennies) 'til Oct. 1.

Theres your answer its 3 stories is it the kind of home where the garage is on the bottom and what exposure do you have? if the garage is on the bottom floor and your home is 3 stories and you have a bad exposure I wouldnt expect it to cool off I would invest in good blinds and keep them closed all the time and put foil on my windows where you get the afternoon sun. And yeah I wouldnt count on it cooling down the begining of Oct usually not until the end of Oct does it cool down and usually thats just the night and mornings.

[Leaving AZ]

Originally Posted by Bill-

I lived in Chicago for 23 years and had the heat on in every month except June, July and August.

What keeping your heat on for that long this is a little extreme dont you think Chicago is beautiful from May to Nov most of the time you can leave your windows open.

[mortimer]

Leaving AZ stated:

> ... not until the end of Oct does it cool down and usually thats
> just the night and mornings.

Oct 1st ave high = 96 (record = 108) ave low = 69
Oct 31st ave high = 80 (record = 95) ave low = 54

By the end of September, you can have your windows open after the
sun goes down till the morning.

Earlier, I wrote:
M> The length of daylight is more than an hour less on Oct 1
M> than it is on Sep 1.

It is also an hour less on Oct 31 than on Oct 1.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by Leaving AZ

What keeping your heat on for that long this is a little extreme dont you think Chicago is beautiful from May to Nov most of the time you can leave your windows open.

May is wishy-washy. Some days will be in the 80s, others in the 50s-60s. I dont usually turn the heat on until mid-October.

[Magnum Mike]

Originally Posted by mortimer

> ... Earlier, I wrote:
M> The length of daylight is more than an hour less on Oct 1
M> than it is on Sep 1.

It is also an hour less on Oct 31 than on Oct 1.

Just a slight correction on your daylight hours for October, the difference in the length of daylight hours from October 1 through October 31st is 33 minutes.

Monthly Sunrise Sunset Times for Phoenix, Arizonia

We are seeing a noticeable change in daylight hours, so that's a sign that the cooler weather is on its way.

The fall equinox (when daylight and night hours are equal) is on September 27th.