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HVAC Tips for Leaving Town

Victoria Cleland
Thursday, 04 August 2016 / Published in Home Tips, HVAC System Advice, Top Tips

HVAC Tips for Leaving Town

Knowing what to do with your HVAC when you leave town.

Taking a trip? Follow these tips regarding your HVAC while you're gone.

Are you going out of town on a last-minute vacation? If so, have you given any thought into what you should do with your heating and air conditioning equipment?

It would seem like what do should be easy. Since you aren’t going to be home, you should just turn it off, right? That’s actually not the best thing to do. On paper it seems that turning off the equipment while you aren’t there is going to be the best way to save money, but it may actually end up costing you more.

First, we have to remember that your heating and air conditioning system isn’t just in charge of the temperature of your home. Yes, that is the main reason that you have it in your home. But, it actually does so much more. Your HVAC system is in charge of…

  • Circulating air
  • Controlling humidity
  • Controlling indoor allergens and air pollutants

If humidity levels skyrocket while you are gone, it may lead to condensation (i.e. MOLD) issues in your home. Tackling a mold issue could end up costing you so much more than keeping your air conditioner on for the few days you are out of town.

Further, getting your home back to your ideal temperature when you get back in town can be a big energy suck. That’s definitely going to be reflected on your end-of-the-month utility bill.Don't turn your air conditioner off when you go out of town. Just turn up your thermostat instead.

But, what should you do??

Well, you can turn the thermostat up so that the system is still running at intervals (i.e. dehumidifying) while you are gone, but not consuming as much energy as it would if you were in town. Plus, when you get back home, it won’t take as long to get your home back to temperature.

Did you already know this? What other things do you do around the house before you go on vacation?

 

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Tagged under: Articles

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29 Comments to “ HVAC Tips for Leaving Town”

  1. siaosi says :
    April 10, 2017 at 11:51 am

    I think it would be nice to have a my HVAC system checked out. I think it would be nice to know everything is working for the summer months. I want to make sure that everything is working correctly.

  2. Leviticus Bennett says :
    April 18, 2017 at 9:49 am

    It’s good to know that I should leave the air conditioner on while I’m gone, but at a higher temperature like you mentioned. I’m planning to go on a trip to Vancouver pretty soon and I’ll be gone for a few weeks. I’ve never been gone so long, so I wasn’t sure how to leave the thermostat.

  3. J Davidson says :
    June 6, 2017 at 4:22 pm

    Great advice! Leaving the AC on just at a higher temperature is such a good idea. Thanks for sharing!

  4. LNWeaver says :
    June 7, 2017 at 7:05 pm

    That’s a good point that HVAC units control humidity in the home. I guess they aren’t just for heat. I’m going on a long out of country trip in the winter, so I’ll have to use your tHVAC tips here.

  5. Trey says :
    June 8, 2017 at 11:14 pm

    I live in a pretty humid area in the US, so turning off the AC completely is a suicide mission for your house. I’m actually really interested in setting up a system where I could adjust the temperature from my smartphone when I’m out of the house longer than I thought or I want to make adjustments to save money.

  6. Alice Jones says :
    June 9, 2017 at 2:58 pm

    My family is leaving on a vacation for a week, but I want to make sure everything is running smoothly while we’re gone. I like how you explain the purpose and role of having an HVAC unit in the home. If one of these roles is not working when we come back, I’ll hire a HVAC contractor who can make a repair.

  7. Ernest London says :
    June 23, 2017 at 10:08 am

    Thanks for the tips about maintaining your HVAC. My wife and I are going out of town, and we want to make sure that our AC is in good shape. I like that you mentioned to turn your thermostat so that it is still running at intervals while you are gone. We will be sure to do that!

  8. Tami Lackey says :
    July 3, 2017 at 3:43 pm

    These are some good insights that are often not considered when you’re going to be away from home. It’s also a good idea to have our hvac equipment looked at by a professional before each season to make sure it’s working optimally.

  9. Gerty Gift says :
    March 15, 2018 at 11:13 am

    I am really grateful for your article. My husband and I are planning on taking the family on an extended trip and were just going to turn our air conditioning off. I didn’t know that doing that could result in mold growing. We will be following your advice when we leave.

  10. Burt Silver says :
    April 12, 2018 at 9:20 am

    That’s a good point you mention about controlling the humidity. My brother just turned off his thermostat from his phone here at our family reunion. I’ll have to let him know that he should turn it back on. He’ll also probably save money because he won’t have to cool the house back down when he gets back. Thanks for the useful tips!

  11. Penelope Smith says :
    August 1, 2018 at 9:51 pm

    This is some really good information about HVAC services. It is going to know that it would be smart to get good air circulation. That does seem like a good thing for me to know as a new homeowner. I should probably test my circulation soon.

  12. Gary Puntman says :
    August 24, 2018 at 9:40 am

    I’m planning a long trip right now and one of the things I’ve been thinking about is my HVAC system. It’s good to know that you should make sure you control the humidity. I’ll have to remember to turn my thermostat up a little bit, like you suggested.

  13. Camille Devaux says :
    November 5, 2018 at 7:39 pm

    My sister just moved into her first home and she wants to make sure that she is taking care of the system. It might help her to know that she should do specific things if she leaves the home. Making sure that you are keeping the system run in intervals is useful.

  14. Andy Brown says :
    November 9, 2018 at 3:37 pm

    It never occurred to me that I should take care of my HVAC system when going out of town. Thank you for the informative article. I will pay attention from now on!

  15. Industrial Chiller Manufacturers says :
    January 2, 2019 at 8:00 am

    Very informative article about how to save your HVAC life thanks.

  16. Taylor Bishop says :
    January 22, 2019 at 11:28 am

    Thanks for going over some HVAC tips to do if you are planning on leaving town for a while. it’s good to know that you should turn the thermostat up so it doesn’t consume as much energy. Perhaps it could be good to match the temperature of what the outdoors is like.

  17. Bhupendra Choudhary says :
    February 27, 2019 at 1:59 am

    Thanks for the advice! We are planning to go on vacation soon. We wanted to keep the AC in good shape without paying too much bill. So, this seems a nice idea.

  18. Sam Li says :
    March 28, 2019 at 3:15 pm

    I love what you said about circulating air and humidity. I believe that HVAC repairs should be administered by skilled professionals. I’ll make sure to find the best HVAC contractor around.

  19. Gillian Babcock says :
    May 28, 2019 at 4:09 am

    My sister is having a hard time because her AC is not working properly. It was mentioned here that she should leave her thermostat is running at intervals. Moreover, it’s recommended to hire professionals when dealing with heating and air conditioning systems issues.

  20. Amy Winters says :
    June 25, 2019 at 10:13 pm

    Thank you for pointing out that if you are going on a vacation, you should make sure that your air conditioning unit stays on to continue circulating the air. My husband and I have been talking about leaving on vacation. It’s good to know that we should leave the air conditioner on.

  21. Thomas Jameson says :
    July 5, 2019 at 9:21 am

    It’s good to know that your HVAC system controls humidity as well as keeping your air cool. My wife and I thoroughly dislike hot, muggy air, and we’re looking for a new way to control the air in our home so that we’re comfortable. We’ll be sure to look further into ducted air conditioning and HVAC units in the future to help us remain comfortable in our home.

  22. Larry Weaver says :
    July 30, 2019 at 10:45 am

    Thanks for the HVAC tips. I am thinking of installing a new unit in my own home so I have proper heating and cooling. I’ll be sure to work with a professional to get it installed, and I’ll make sure it is maintained as well.

  23. Randy Chorvack says :
    August 15, 2019 at 2:26 pm

    I actually had no idea that your HVAC system also takes care of controlling humidity. It makes sense that you wouldn’t want to turn it off. You could get some pretty bad water damage if you did.

  24. Ron Booker says :
    August 16, 2019 at 1:40 pm

    I found it interesting when you said that leaving your AC off when you step out for a vacation can be a bad idea because it can lead to condensation and mold development. My wife and I are thinking about leaving for a vacation for two weeks and we never thought about leaving our AC on. We are going to follow your advice and leave our AC on to avoid mold development.

  25. Ron Booker says :
    September 23, 2019 at 10:27 am

    Wow, it’s interesting that AC is responsible for keeping your home in humidity-controlled, as well as controlling allergens away from your home. My wife wants to have our ducts clean to keep the circulating air out of pollutants. Thank you for helping me learn more about the benefits of having an AC in your home.

  26. Samantha says :
    October 14, 2019 at 8:59 pm

    This is very interesting to read. Precaution is important. We don’t know what happens when we leave our house. I’ll ask for an appointment for my HVAC contractor for this.We’re planning to leave the town this coming holiday, and make sure to do this.

  27. Tyson Coolidge says :
    October 15, 2019 at 10:56 am

    I like what you said about your HVAC system being in charge of circulating your air. My wife and I want to make sure that the air in our home is circulating well. We’ll be sure to look further into our options for heating contractors that can help us with this in the future.

  28. David Johnson says :
    October 22, 2019 at 12:07 pm

    That’s really crazy that you shouldn’t just turn off the AC because then the air can’t necessarily circulate or regulate the humidity. My mom is going out of town for a few days on a cruise next week. Before she goes, because she lives in an older house, we’ll have to look into air conditioning experts who can ensure that her system is in top shape for the vacation.

  29. Vivian Black says :
    March 20, 2020 at 3:02 pm

    You made a great point about circulating air and how it can help you get your ideal temperature. My husband and I are looking for an HVAC service we can get for our furnace since it has been leaking for about a week now. We will keep these tips in mind as we search for a professional that can help us best.

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