How long is your AC running each day?

74 degrees, sub 50% humidity, 2 stage system ~20 hr a day right now in S. LA

1 unit about 13-14 hours a day other unit 15-16 hours a day during the week. Weekends 15-16 and 18-20 hours. Units are 2 stage and the one running higher hours is on west side of the house.

$10-12 a day electricity via the Entergy usage meter. Will be my first bill over $300

Variable upstairs unit (Acadian style home, surrounded by attic) 18.65-21.5h/d the last 10d.
Single stage main living area: 9.75-14.
Master + nursery unit (single stage): 15.25-17.25


Probably going to be getting some quotes on sealing/foaming the attic space when it cools off. Just had an energy audit with a FLIR camera. Surprisingly little intrusion/bad insulation/bad weatherstripping.

Friend,

Mother has fled north to escape the heat leaving me to swelter. I do not want our air conditioners to work too hard, so I have set the upstairs thermostat to 85 and the two downstairs thermostats to 84 during the day. At night, I am staying downstairs and set one of the thermostats to 80 and leave the other at 84. The upstairs unit is running perhaps four hours each day. The less used downstairs unit is running five hours each day and the other A/C I turn down during the night to 80 runs about six hours. It is not as comfortable as the winter, but I have a fan on when I sleep. I look forward to Front Day and having no need for air conditioning or heating. Heating is disgusting and if I were alone in the house, I would never turn on the heater.

Yours,
TulaneLSU

Average for July is 14.7 hours a day according to ecobee. Settings are 73 during the day and 70 at night.

13 to 15 hours a day.

My upcoming energy bill is $244 with $28 of that being hurricane restoration charge.

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Jesus Christ! I’m in south LA but I’m nowhere near that. Can’t imagine that electric bill!

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I don't think time running tells the whole story. Ours run almost constantly, and our bills have been the lowest reported on our neighborhood page.

16.5/day in July. It can't keep up in the evenings - runs nonstop from about 4 to 10pm

This is for our upstairs unit. I don't have the smart thermostat for the downstairs yet. But I'm pretty sure it runs less.

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So what's the go to if you need a new unit? Is a 16 seer single stage solid?

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Most important thing is is properly sized and not oversized. After that, it matters how good the installer is and the quality of their work. After that, finding the unit that fits your budget.

Single stage units are solid but you'll want to make sure you get one with a good EER2 rating. EER2 is what defines the performance in 95F heat when your elec bills are highest.