If you're on a time-of-use plan, try pre-cooling your home this summer to save money.

[@SuchetaShah-fs8he]

This doesn’t work unless your house is well insulated. Plus if you are home all day, it isn’t comfortable. And my West facing rooms become super warm by 7pm and do not cool down before bedtime.

[@woodyd-184]

I have been doing this for years. It was a bit of a struggle when there was a 5-hour (3pm - 8pm) on peak period. Now that it is only 3 hours 4pm - 7pm it is a piece of cake. I set my thermostat at 74 degrees from 7pm - 4pm and off from 4pm - 7pm. My inside temperature never reaches 80 degrees before the air kicks on at 8pm. I also make sure my pool pump is only on during the off-.peak period. My demand charge is always between 1.1 and 1.3. I have a 2500 SF home with vaulted ceilings and a pool. My budget billing is only $128 a month. I like my house cool so it works great for me.

[@cleighbetts1227]

Been doing this with our 2 story, east facing house for several years. Our budget billing has been the same for several years now. I set the upstairs at 71 and the downstairs at 73 at 2pm. At 4, I set the upstairs to 79 and the downstairs to 81. At 7, I turn set the upstairs to 74-76, and the downstairs to 76-78. Usually, at 7pm, the upstairs is right around 78-79, and the downstairs is a nice 77. It helps that we have new windows upstairs, I use solar shades on the back patio to keep the sun off the porch, and we have trees in the backyard as well. Pre-cooling works for us!

[@deanoversole500]

Thanks for this video

[@AliceDryer]

I am home all day and I don't want my house cold. I set the temperature at 77 or 78 degrees and usually leave the same all night. Any advise to keep my bills low? Thank you Alice Dryer

[@stevend1176]

Yes you have the right idea but you can turn it up to 80 during peek hours then back down for sleep

[@robincook1852]

Look at your rate plan. I switched to the Demand Plan. Like you, I'm home all day and use the same amount of energy day in/day out. Creature of habit. When I switched to Demand my summer bills went down $200+ a month. During the winter I run my pool between 10am and 3pm during the super saver hours and try to run other appliances like the dishwasher, washer/dryer, vacuum, golf cart charger during those hours as well. I wish they offered super saver hours during summer.

[@suzannepriolo6738]

I’m sure you know that APS offers all extremely low peak hours on every single holiday. If it falls on a Saturday then Friday is the day to do it. If it falls on a Sunday, then the holiday is observed on that Monday. Plus you could call Sunny Energy. It’s a solar company. They are very good and I have nothing but credit so far this summer and my bills are under $25 if I have to pay anything and I live in a 2000 square-foot house, but I don’t have a pool or a golf cart.

[@suzannepriolo6738]

I usually keep ours at 78 all day. When it cools down around 80 in the evening, I turn it off and usually just open up my front door and the back slider for airflow. I also open my bedroom windows at night until about 5:30 or six in the morning then I close them.

[@robincook1852]

@suzannepriolo6738 where do you live that it cools of to 80° at night? We're well into the 90s until the sun comes up, then it climbs

[@stevend1176]

yes lets overwork our ac system

[@ButImThebee]

Actually that's not how that works. Pre-cooling is an age old way of saving money with your AC. I have mine cool down to 65 so during on peak hours it's cold all night until way after my off-peak turns on saving me loads.

[@woodyd-184]

I use less KWs while pre-cooling. When it does kick on at 7pm it is like highway miles as opposed to stop and go city traffic.

[@stevend1176]

@@woodyd-184 you'll be buying a new system a whole lot sooner

[@robincook1852]

I tried this and it absolutely does not work for me. I have a single story ranch style with two new 4-ton units. My entry and living room have 20+ high ceilings. I also have a lot of windows and sliders. There are sunshades and solar window coverings on all windows. East/West facing. All pre-cooling did was keep me freezing during the day and cause my rates to go up, despite turning my AC completely off during peak hours. What makes more sense is good insulation in exterior walls and attics, good window insulation, and HVAC system maintenance. I keep my thermostat at 77 or 78 during peak hours, turn up to 80 at 4 pm, and only run one unit at a time. No point in cooling bedrooms I'm not using during the day. Honestly, what made the difference was replacing my 29 year old Tranes with new AC's. My summer bills went down $200+ a month. When I go to bed at night the new AC cools the room down in a matter of minutes.