Best Thermostat Settings in San Antonio to Save Money

Howdy, neighbors. It is a beautiful morning here in San Antonio, even if that 49 degree air felt a little crisp when you stepped out to get the paper. If you have lived in South Texas for more than a week, you know that a light jacket in the morning does not mean a thing by the afternoon. We are right in the middle of what I like to call weather whiplash. This week is a prime example. We are starting in the 40s, we are going to hit 90 degrees by Sunday, and then a cold front is going to blow through Sunday night with 45 mile per hour winds that will drop us right back down. It is enough to make your thermostat dizzy.

I have been running Wrangler Air Conditioning since 2009, and if there is one thing I have learned, it is that folks are worried about their utility bills. With CPS Energy talking about a 5.5 percent rate hike and SAWS looking at an 8 percent increase, every penny counts. Your thermostat is the steering wheel of your home. If you handle it right, you will have a smooth ride. If you jerk it around every time the clouds move, you are going to pay for it at the pump, or in this case, the power bill. Let us talk about the best thermostat settings to keep your hard earned money in your pocket where it belongs.

Mastering the Magic Numbers for Texas Comfort

When folks ask me for the best thermostat settings San Antonio homes need, I always give them two magic numbers: 78 and 68. I know, I know. Some of y'all are looking at that 78 degree number and thinking I have spent too much time in the sun. But hear me out. In the summer, or on a 90 degree Sunday in March, 78 degrees is the sweet spot. It is cool enough to take the humidity out of the air but high enough that your compressor is not running itself into an early grave.

Every degree you drop below 78 can add about 3 percent to your cooling costs. If you insist on keeping the house at 70 degrees when it is 95 outside, you are basically asking your AC to run a marathon in work boots. On the flip side, when that cold front hits Sunday night and the temperature drops 30 degrees in a heartbeat, aim for 68 degrees. If you are wearing a sweater and some good wool socks, 68 feels just fine. It keeps the furnace from cycling constantly and helps you avoid those massive spikes in gas or electric usage.

How to Save Money During Weather Whiplash

The hardest part of living in San Antonio during March is the transition. You might need the heater at 6:00 AM and the AC by 2:00 PM. This is where most people lose money. They see the forecast for 90 degrees on Sunday and they panic. They set the AC to 65 on Saturday night to try and prep the house. Folks, that is not how it works. Your house is not a refrigerator. It cannot hold that cold forever.

The best way to handle these swings is to stay steady. If the high is going to be 90, keep it at 78. If you are going to be away from home for more than four hours, bump it up to 82. Do not turn the system off entirely. If you turn it off, the walls, the furniture, and the carpet all soak up the heat. When you get home and turn it back on, your AC has to work three times as hard to remove the heat from all those surfaces. It is much cheaper to maintain a steady temperature than to try and recover from a 10 degree climb.

The Impact of Rising Utility Rates in San Antonio

We have to be real about the costs. Right now, we are looking at about 13.6 cents per kWh. That might not sound like much, but when you have a 3,000 square foot home and a 15 year old AC unit, those cents add up fast. With the potential 5.5 percent rate hike from CPS Energy on the horizon, being smart with your thermostat is not just a good idea, it is a financial necessity. We are all feeling the squeeze, from the grocery store to the water bill.

One way to fight back is to look into the incentives that were discussed at the Public Utility Commission meeting earlier this week. There are programs popping up for home weatherization and smart thermostat adoption. CPS Energy even offers a solar rebate of 20 cents per watt, up to $2,500. While solar is a big step, a smart thermostat is a small step that pays off almost immediately. It can learn your habits and automatically adjust when you are at work at USAA or down at the Pearl for dinner.

Dealing with Sunday Night Wind Gusts and Drafts

The forecast is calling for 40 to 45 mile per hour wind gusts this Sunday night. That is more than just a nuisance for your patio furniture. High winds can literally suck the conditioned air out of your house through tiny cracks around windows and doors. This is called the wind tunnel effect. When that happens, your thermostat thinks the house is getting hotter or colder than it actually is, causing your system to kick on when it shouldn't.

• •Check the weatherstripping around your front and back doors before Sunday arrives.
• •Keep your curtains closed on the north side of the house when the cold front hits to add an extra layer of insulation.
• •Make sure your fireplace damper is closed if you are not using it, otherwise it is like leaving a window wide open.
• •Ensure your outdoor unit is clear of debris like leaves or branches that might blow around during the storm.

Why Thermostat Save Money Strategies Start with Maintenance

You can have the most expensive thermostat in the world, but if your AC unit is filthy, you are still going to overpay. A system that is bogged down with South Texas dust and pollen has to run longer to reach the temperature you set. If you set it to 78 but the coils are dirty, it might take two hours to get there instead of twenty minutes. That is why we always preach about regular maintenance.

At Wrangler, we treat your system like our own. We check the refrigerant levels, we clean those coils, and we make sure the electrical components are tight. Especially with the severe weather season and hail threats we have been seeing lately, you want to know your unit is sturdy. A well maintained system responds faster to thermostat changes, which means it spends less time drawing power from the grid. It is the most straightforward way to keep your bills low as the temperatures climb toward 90.

Smart Thermostat Settings for Different Schedules

Not every family in San Antonio runs on the same clock. A retired couple in Stone Oak has different needs than a young family in Alamo Heights where the parents are commuting downtown every day. Here is how you should program your thermostat based on how you live. If you are out of the house from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, let the temperature rise to 85 in the summer. Set it to start cooling back down to 78 about thirty minutes before you get home.

For the folks who work from home, you might be tempted to keep it at 72 all day because you are sitting still. Try using a ceiling fan instead. A fan allows you to keep the thermostat about 4 degrees higher while feeling just as cool. The fan cools you, not the room, so remember to turn it off when you leave the office. This simple trick can save you a significant amount over the course of a long Texas summer.

Preparing for the 30 Degree Temperature Drop

When that front hits Sunday night and we see that 30 degree drop, do not just flip the switch to 'Heat' and forget it. If your house is still at 78 from the afternoon heat, and the outside air drops to 50, your house is naturally going to lose heat. Let it happen. Do not turn the heater on until the indoor temperature actually hits 68. You would be surprised how much heat your home can retain just from the sun hitting the roof during the day.

This is also a good time to check your air filters. With the high winds coming, there is going to be a lot of dust and cedar pollen flying around. A clogged filter makes your blower motor work harder, which uses more electricity and can even lead to a breakdown. It is a simple, honest fix that anyone can do, and it protects your system during these extreme transitions.

The Wrangler Way: Fair Advice for Our Neighbors

We have been a part of this community for a long time. We have seen the summers get hotter and the utility bills get higher. Our goal at Wrangler is not to sell you something you do not need. We want to be the dependable neighbors you call when things go wrong. Whether it is helping you pick out a smart thermostat that actually works or coming out for a late night repair when the Texas weather gets wild, we are here for you.

Living in San Antonio means being prepared. We handle the heat, we handle the humidity, and we handle the occasional ice storm. By taking control of your thermostat settings now, you are setting yourself up for a much better spring and summer. Stay cool, stay warm, and keep an eye on those wind gusts this weekend. If you need a hand making sure your system is ready for the 90 degree days ahead, give us a holler.