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AC Intentionally Turning Off Intermittently
Posted On: October 1, 2023
How bad is it to turn the AC off on nice days (high 60s) instead of continuing to run? I usually plan to keep it off for days at a time, not frequently turning it on and off (I know that draws a lot of power and wear).
Every answer I find about this have more to do with turning off on vacation, etc.
Question from user ClosdforBusiness at AirConditioners at reddit.
Answer:
All air conditioning units cycle on and off probably 100 times a day.
Only undersized units would run constantly.
Read my other comment first, you don't really need all this info.
—-assuming your taking about a whole home central air unit, not a window air conditioner.
—— .
The fan isn't the same as the AC, the fan can run to circulate air without the cooling part running.
Turning it off is no different than having a cool day when it doesn't need to run.
If you cook something in your oven or boil water on the stove for a long time, or even use an air fryer (they're basically space heaters) all those things will cause your AC to run extra.
It's 10000% fine to not use it some days, as long as your not turning it off by blocking vents or doing something crazy like disconnecting the coolant lines.
Turning it on and off isn't bad for it, that's how it's designed to work.
Google “duty cycle” for info on this, usually they run for say 10 mins, off for 10, back on for 5, off for 10, etc as needed to cool the place to the temp you set it to.
If it ran 24 - 7 it would ice up and stop working.
I'm not sure why you'd think turning it off would cause it to use more power.
That's not a thing that happens.
It seems you believed the white lies your dad or similar thermostat controlling person told you as a kid.
Not running something won't cause it to use more power, by definition it being off means it's not using any power and it's very rare for something to require so much start up power that it's worth leaving on.
Yes motors do have a power peak when first spinning up a motor, but that's like a 0.
1 second peak.
Running it for even 1 minute uses more power.
Answer from user maniacalmango0 at AirConditioners at reddit.
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