How many hours/days should you be gone from your home for it to be worth turning the thermostat to 85 degrees?

Question

My a/c guy says that I should always leave my a/c on 76 degrees when we leave - even when we leave for 10 days! I think there should be some point at which the number of days gone makes a difference. I do live in the south and it's very humid here, but my home is very well insulated.

Answer 1

maybe if your were leaving for months.... and then you would have to winterize (close off and clean up everything) your place....  10 days is nothing!

and if you have hard wood floors or wood cabinets- you could warp them with the humidity which isn't saving you anything!

Answer 2

I agree with the AC guy. The amount of energy it takes to cool the home exceeds the amount needed to maintain the temperature. Also, think of your Refrigerator, how hard it would have to work! Not to mention, heat is hard on electronics. Since your home is well insulated, to save a few dollars, just turn it up to 78 when you are gone.