Baton Rouge Residential Air Conditioning Service: How to Treat Your A/C While on Vacation

The time for summer vacation has arrived, and with it comes an extended stay away from home. While you’re preparing your plans and your luggage, one of the last steps you need to take is to make sure your home is taken care of while you’re away. This means boarding your pets and holding your mail, but what about your home’s air conditioner?

Should you turn your A/C off to save power while on vacation?

The answer to this question is, “No”. You should not turn the air conditioner off completely while you're away. The main reason is that air conditioning does not help with temperature alone; it also maintains the quality of the air inside your home. Factors such as moisture and humidity can damage other components of your home including drywall, art, and house plants.

What you can do to save on power is change the thermostat to a level where it will not operate as often in your absence. Shades that face direct sunlight should also be closed to keep the extra heat from entering your home.

A great step to take to keep your house running on low electricity is to unplug some of your electronics and small appliances. These will all use electricity whether they are in use or not and will emit some heat.

Many homeowners are also choosing to use high tech thermostats that allow temperature control to be managed away from home. With these, you can set the temperature of your home for certain dates and times so that your home’s air quality is kept where it needs to be always.

How to Set Your A/C for a Summer Vacation

The biggest threat to your home in the summer time is heat, humidity and moisture. If you have pets that will be staying at home, you should set your thermostat to 80 degrees. This will keep fresh air inside the house circulating and keep the house cool enough for them to be comfortable and at no risk to heat related illnesses.

If you will have a completely empty house while on your trip, you can set the thermostat a little bit higher at around 85 degrees. This will keep the air quality in your home high enough to prevent damage to your furniture, walls, and your houseplants.

Upon returning, your home will be very hot and uncomfortable. It is a good option to have someone flip your air conditioner to its normal setting before you arrive home if you do not have remote access to your thermostat.

If you have any questions about how to treat your air conditioner through any time of year, contact Glaze Heating and Air for a consultation with one of our highly trained HVAC technicians. We are dedicated to helping the people of South Louisiana remain cool and comfortable all year round.