When summer brings the heat, many homeowners try to outsmart their air conditioning system in the name of saving energy. One common tactic? Turning the thermostat way up—or even off—when leaving for the day, then cranking it back down when returning home. It sounds like a smart energy-saving move. But here’s the catch: it could be doing more harm than good.
Your A/C Isn’t Designed to Work That Way
Air conditioning systems are typically sized to cool your home about 20 degrees cooler than the outdoor temperature. So on a 95-degree day, your system is working at its max to bring your indoor temp down to 75. That’s already a heavy lift.
Now imagine you set your thermostat to 85 or 88 while you’re out. When you get home and want it comfortable again—fast—you set it back to 72. Your system suddenly has to overcome a massive temperature gap. It will run longer, harder, and hotter to get you there, and all that strain increases the chance of a breakdown—especially during a heatwave, when technicians are already backed up.
Setbacks Aren’t Always Savings
It’s easy to assume that a higher thermostat setting automatically means lower energy use. But extreme setbacks can backfire. The longer and harder your system has to run to catch up, the less efficient it becomes. You might not save much, if anything—and you could end up with a service call instead.
A Smarter Strategy
So what should you do? Moderate setbacks are fine—2 to 4 degrees higher than your comfort setting during the day is a good range. Better yet, install a programmable or smart thermostat that adjusts gradually and learns your schedule. That way, your home stays comfortable, your system runs efficiently, and you avoid those late-day cooling marathons.
At BDL Heating & Cooling, we’re here to help you get the most out of your system without overworking it. If your A/C is struggling to keep up, give us a call—we’ll make sure it’s running at peak performance all season long.
