Home Improvement Asked by Margo B on December 8, 2020
I purchased a historic house built in 1920. The house has two HVAC units, one for the upper floor, one for the lower. Total sq ft 3300.
I had been setting the upstairs thermostat at about 83 degrees during the day lowering to 76 after sunset as it is not often used during daytime hours. I was told by my HVAC technician that this was a bad idea due to everything absorbing the heat.. carpeting walls furniture insulation etc.
I have to agree as the unit ran nonstop when attempting to get to a comfortable 76 degree sleeping temperature at night. The house has bedrooms on both floors and the downstairs is generally kept at around 78 during the day reduced for sleeping to 74.
I live in a hot and humid climate where overnight lows can be mid 80s with upwards of 80 percent humidity. Day time highs easily reach 98 to 100.
The downstairs area has a high ceiling . Can someone recommend a good temperature setting for both thermostats that will 1. Not have the AC running non stop 2. Not break the bank to maintain a comfortable temperature. I’ve read many conflicting articles on the temperature spread between the two floors and have come away more confused than ever.
You ask a tough question and I assume those are the articles you've read that left you with no definitive answer.
Personally, I've found it least expensive and of course most comfortable to set-it-and-forget-it in my last 2 homes...the only ones that had central air. By just maintaining the thermostat's comfort range of a few degrees the system will only activate briefly once or twice an hour typically.
Mine's set to 70 and only on the 95-plus days does it occasionally fall behind at mid-afternoon for an hour. It depends on cloud assistance here and there or wind being present to cool off the roof and siding.
In your case of 2 systems and 2 floors your only real course of action for any further experimentation or "construction" would be to install a door...likely just temporarily with even plastic sheeting taped liberally at the top and bottom.
A door or the enclosure of the top of the stairs (so cold air doesn't fall from upstairs) would allow you to see if turning the upstairs off or up so high during the day is beneficial at all. I'd suggest 74 or 75 all of the time, unless you're actually comfortable at the 78 for the majority of 24-hours.
Answered by Iggy on December 8, 2020
If you are uncomfortable upstairs at night during the time it takes the upstairs to go from 83 to 76, then you could turn the thermostat down one, two, or three hours earlier. This will cost more but there is no other way. If you would leave the thermostat at 76 all day, then it would cost you a lot more than that.
The upstairs unit is somewhat undersized if it cannot lower the temperature from 83 to 76 in an hour or two, but that is the unit you have. Check the filter, change it more often and see if that helps.
Answered by Jim Stewart on December 8, 2020
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