[DavieJ89]

Originally Posted by PinkString

For some of you that keep your thermostat in the low to mid 70's, are you wearing long sleeves? I'd be freezing with it set that low. Run around naked and turn up the thermostat. You might scare the ups guy, but maybe you'd save more money too.

I dont like it much cooler than 75 personally, 76-80 is perfect to me, I dont use the ac too much but when winter comes I crank up the heat

[PinkString]

Originally Posted by DavieJ89

I dont like it much cooler than 75 personally, 76-80 is perfect to me, I dont use the ac too much but when winter comes I crank up the heat

When winter comes, the heat only goes on in late november to late february. And we keep it at the bare minimum. Lots of long sleeves, and comfy throws/blankets to snuggle under. Plus we have a heated mattress cover that I mainly only use in the coldest months on my side. but my husband uses it most of the winter since he sleeps naked. I told him he could use one of my flannel nightgowns to keep warm, but he declined.

[wwu123]

Originally Posted by MediocreButArrogant

True, what I wrote only applies to homes in older neighborhoods, unless the builder did something really sleazy and found some older unused A/C units and installed them. Since 2006 every new A/C unit manufactured is required to be minimum 13 SEER.

The house my parents moved to in Henderson was built in mid-2007. I assume the A/C is some cheap builders grade model (it's in the attic so I didn't get to climb up to take a look). It's good to know it's required to hae a minimum SEER, but I did observe with a power meter that when the A/C fan is running but not the compressor, that the system consumes about 1000 watts. Does that seem a bit high even for a cheap single-speed blower fan - I was expecting more like 300-500 watts?

Trouble is my parents want to upgrade thge thermostat to get random air recirculation. I'm in the queue for the NVEnergy Coolshare program, their Honeywell thermostat has a air recirc feature that will randomly turn on the fan 35% of the time. That seems like it will be fairly costly with the fan going at 1000 watts.

[airics]

the ac unit is outside the home.. the furnace is on the inside

[MediocreButArrogant]

Originally Posted by wwu123

It's good to know it's required to hae a minimum SEER, but I did observe with a power meter that when the A/C fan is running but not the compressor, that the system consumes about 1000 watts. Does that seem a bit high even for a cheap single-speed blower fan - I was expecting more like 300-500 watts?

1kW seems way too high. I just got up and flicked on the fan (radiothermostat.com was down, otherwise I wouldn't have had to get up) on for my upstairs A/C (2.5 tons) for a few seconds. I get a 500 watt spike when the fan starts and then it settles down to 260 watts.

[MediocreButArrogant]

Originally Posted by airics

1800 rpm???

1800rpm on an Intelliflo with the typical amount of dynamic head present on your average Las Vegas residential pool's plumbing results in about 30gpm, or eight hours for one turn of a 15k gallon pool.

When you write idiotic nonsense like you're turning your pool every four hours (i.e. 60gpm) and saving energy with your variable speed pump, you have to expect to get called on it. Only one of those statements can be true.

[airics]

Originally Posted by MediocreButArrogant

1800rpm on an Intelliflo with the typical amount of dynamic head present on your average Las Vegas residential pool's plumbing results in about 30gpm, or eight hours for one turn of a 15k gallon pool.

When you write idiotic nonsense like you're turning your pool every four hours (i.e. 60gpm) and saving energy with your variable speed pump, you have to expect to get called on it. Only one of those statements can be true.

Go to the pentair calculator, you save even at 60gpm. The pump itself saves even at full power compared to the single speed. And aa702 is correct, at minimum speeds, the shark barely moves.

[LinkFromSoCal]

Just got ours - $262 for the 30 days from July 5 to August 4. This came as a relief, as the horror stories about $600 summer bills made me anxious (this was my family's first full month in Henderson). However, now I'm wondering; just how in the heck does someone accrue a $600 bill? We've got a 2400 sq ft, two story home. The central air is on every night. A swamp cooler is on downstairs for much of the day. A pool pump is running several hours every day. Last month, my uncle's big family visited for a week, using up more energy. Despite this, our bill wasn't even $300. Are people out there really running their AC 24/7 at 70 degrees or something, because that's the only way I see $600 as even remotely plausible.

[ScoopLV]

Originally Posted by LinkFromSoCal

Are people out there really running their AC 24/7 at 70 degrees or something, because that's the only way I see $600 as even remotely plausible.

No window treatments, two ancient refrigerators (and a freezer in the garage), electric appliances, leaving the thermostat on all day at 70f and the (incandescent) lights on all the time. My neighbors have shown me $500 bills in July for 3,000 sqft properties -- "does this look right to you?"

These are the same neighbors who drive 4x4 trucks that never go offroading, running with a fuel mix that's too rich, so blue smoke comes out the exhaust.

I don't even bother suggesting a better way. It's their money. If they want to blow seven grand a year on electricity and fossil fuels, nothing I say is going to change their mind.