[USAmma]

We live in Phoenix and our a/c unit is 10 years old. A lot of our neighbors have already had to replace theirs. We want to replace it with a really good, energy efficient model when the time comes. We are not prepared to do it this year though.

If our a/c broke we would probably only be able to buy a cheaper model that may not last long-term and may not be energy efficient.

If the a/c fails, is it a totally ridiculous idea to buy a small portable unit and just cool the main room during the day? And then at night we can all sleep in the same bedroom room? We have a greatroom and can easily cool that room and shut the bedroom doors. Dh thinks its ridiculous. This coming from a man who was born/raised in India, where his family had exactly 2 window units in the 2 bedrooms. The rest of the house got very hot and we lived with it. I experienced this a couple of summers ago in India. It wasn't so bad as long as you had a room to retreat to that was cool.

If we are able to get our home refinanced we can pull some equity out and get the $ for a new unit. We are not counting on that happening though.

Any other ideas in case the a/c fails?

 

[HydeParkB]

Well, before I got to your second paragraph, I thought "What about just cooling one room."

It would be hard, quite a transition I'm sure. But if you don't have the money, you don't have the money...

We are looking at a dying AC, too. I haven't done it yet, but I want to look into any tax credits (thought there still were some this year) and energy programs through our city or power company. With the economy the way it is, maybe there is an opportunity for a better deal than you could have gotten a year or two ago.

 

[notneb]

It's a much better option than buying an a/c unit only to replace it in a few years, but be aware that those little portable units are very inefficient, and expect your electric bills to increase significantly over the summer if you end up going that route. Hopefully your a/c will make it through at least one more summer!

 

[Kino]

It sounds like something I may try in the future. I live in Phoenix too and only used the A/C three months last year (set at 86) and a space heater in winter. That saved hundreds if not more. We already had ceiling fans.

This year I purchased a couple rolls of solar screen at the hardware store. I thumbtacked it over the windows. Hoping to make the house more comfortable this summer. Also doing the landscaping next month and adding trees, but they won't be of much value till they grow a bit.

 

[tryingforbaby]

That's what we do but it is only hubby and I. We have gotten accustomed to 80 plus in our house. My suggestion would be to set the temp higher... maybe it will last a bit longer and you would be more ready for when something would happen. If you have kids get a kippy pool... and tarp. Buy popcicles... so what our mothers had to do for us. We survived. ... got to the libary.. use the community pool... take a walk around the mall.... so see a movie (when specials are offered).... is there a free art mesum....if your kids are bigger have them volunteer at a nursing home.... use the AC that has to be on all the time.

 

[momasana]

I used to live in Phoenix and I totally understand the importance of having reliable AC. Can you have your old unit serviced? We were able to extend the life of our old unit by having it serviced every spring by using the coupons that came in the mail for a $60 inspection and service, or whatever. They will ALWAYS try to sell you on a $500 repair but just decline that and save that money for when you HAVE to buy a new unit. I think getting it cleaned and serviced probably added a couple of extra years of life to it.

 

[1growingsprout]

I can tell you not having reliable AC in phx is just not an option. We had our AC checked for $35 last week. DH was at homedepot and they were offering a special and he jumped on it.

What I would recommend is have your unit checked and serviced if needed. A window unit will not be efficient in the summer heat here.

 

[I~love~pie]

we are moving to Pheonix this summer. Although we are renting at first, we will be buying hopefully next year. How long do the Ac's generally last? How much to buy them? are we talking thousands of dollars here?
I never really use Ac were we are currently. At most we have a small window unit thats it.

 

[Denvergirlie]

What about a swamp/ evaporative cooler?

My aunt and uncle had a smallish house in Mesa years ago and they never had AC, but did have a whole house swamp cooler and it was still a very nice retreat from the outdoor sun.

 

[SleeplessMommy]

Attic insulation and window shades will reduce your need for AC. Most houses, even newer construction, will benefit from more attic insulation. You can also make a shade for the outside part of your AC - it should shade the unit but not restrict air flow. Also, you would be amazed at the savings in AC costs you can get from a reflective white roof - Habitat for Humanity does this in Florida - most conventional builders are aware of this option and don't do it because they think customers won't buy it.

Portable AC units do not have the same efficiency of permanently installed units. If the unit does fail, start with a service call. In our old house the AC failed and it "just" needed a refrigerant recharge. It was still going 5 years later when we moved.

See my siggy for federal tax credits on super energy efficient AC units.

 

[USAmma]

Thanks for the input and suggestions.

To reply:

We do get it serviced this time of year every year and I'm sure that helps a lot in its lifespan. Even so, Phoenix is hard on a/c units. Our coupon is for a $60 checkup and we usually just spend that much, sometimes we have to get freon added for a bit more.

Thanks for the tax credit info!

We are not allowed to put up window shades that are visible because of our HOA.

: I mean, I could invest in the expensive, color coordinated ones, but we don't have the $ and anyway our tree is starting to shade our hottest room, finally. Our home is 10 years old. We have double paned windows but I should try to cover the ones not seen from the street and see if that helps.

Attic insulation is up there on our priority list. I'm not sure how much that would cost but it might be a good summer project to get some estimates.

The last 2 years our cooling bill has been higher than normal and I think it's because our unit is starting to wear out. We keep the temp set at 82-84. Whe I had it set higher I was fine, but I noticed the kids fought a lot more. We have ceiling fans on all the time. We have the kiddie pool, and the public pool down the street and the library and mall close by. Maybe I will try to bump the temp up to 84-86 and just try to get the kids out more during the day. Really, we are fine with a higher temp except for the increased fighting. We are used to this kind of heat. When it's 115 out, 86 feels like paradise.

We do try to get out of the house a lot-- and if our a/c fails I imagine we will even more. We have birds that need a certain temp. so even if we did not cool the house for us, we need to at least have one room for the birds that's no more than 85-86 at all times. In the summers here it is hot even at night, sometimes reaching 105 until the middle of the night.

A good unit like we want starts at $8000. A cheap replacement unit if ours fails would be around $4000 to start. The portable units for inside are around $250 for the one that would do a decent job in our biggest room.

So hopefully our a/c will last another summer. I do have an emergency fund but I would rather not touch it, KWIM? I do not consider a/c an emergency. I am saving it for some unexpected disaster like dh losing his job or a large medical bill, etc. It's just nice to know that $ is there and I don't want to touch it.

 

[Chicky2]

My dh does HVAC as a side business. He is currently doing a job for a man who's unit went out completely. (My dh is VERY honest and often is called out for 2nd opinions, and OFTEN saves ppl much, much cash). Anyway, the man could not afford a new unit, so my dh found him a used one in good condition for a bit under $800. Not the most energy efficient, but will certainly get them thru for at least a few years. We live in Tx, so we know heat! Look on CL.

I do 2nd the idea of looking into a swamp cooler. Since you don't have the humidity to deal with, that may be a great solution for you!

BTW, there have been some major price increases in freon the last 2 years. It is a *bit* lower this year, but may go back up if gas does. So get units serviced asap!

Also, lots of people do not know this, but if you keep your unit set on "on" so that the fan is blowing constantly, it will save you $. You will feel more comfortable because air is circulating, but you will not have the actual compressor come on as often.

 

[USAmma]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chicky2 My dh does HVAC as a side business. He is currently doing a job for a man who's unit went out completely. (My dh is VERY honest and often is called out for 2nd opinions, and OFTEN saves ppl much, much cash). Anyway, the man could not afford a new unit, so my dh found him a used one in good condition for a bit under $800. Not the most energy efficient, but will certainly get them thru for at least a few years. We live in Tx, so we know heat! Look on CL. I do 2nd the idea of looking into a swamp cooler. Since you don't have the humidity to deal with, that may be a great solution for you! BTW, there have been some major price increases in freon the last 2 years. It is a *bit* lower this year, but may go back up if gas does. So get units serviced asap! Also, lots of people do not know this, but if you keep your unit set on "on" so that the fan is blowing constantly, it will save you $. You will feel more comfortable because air is circulating, but you will not have the actual compressor come on as often.

Thanks for the tips!

The unit we want to get eventually is part swamp cooler part a/c, and it will sample the air and switch to whichever can run most efficiently. Our home is not set up for swamp cooler though, and we would have to get a major redo in the "innards" of our home. At least that's what the a/c person said.

I'm going out to buy some sun shades today for the east/west windows. No one can see them from the street so the HOA won't know about it. I also bought an inexpensive mister system yesterday and set it up to hang from the swingset. The kids can be much cooler and still play outside, which will help with the cabin fever that sets in during summers here. WE can set up the kiddie pool in this area, also. It's shaded by trees in the AM and I can set up our beach umbrella in the afternoon.

 

[SuzyLee]

We just have a window unit in our living room. Obviously it isn't quite as hot here in MN but it does get into the 90's regularly. I find just having the LR cool to be a bit of a pain to get used to but really no problem. By bedtime (here at least) it has cooled down a little outside. We open all the windows overnight and put fans in the windows to cool the house down some.

 

[1growingsprout]

FYI AZ does does humid in the summer and swamp coolers are not efficient during july/august/and early september which is our monsoon or rainy season.
Let me tell you 115 and 40% humidity is NOT fun.

OP, I do know about HOA's and the constraints they place on homeowners and the inabilities you face with 'weatherizing' your house. I can tell you that sunscreens do help ALOT. Along with keeping the blinds and curtains closed during the day.

 

[SleeplessMommy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by USAmma I'm going out to buy some sun shades today for the east/west windows.

Even drapes on the inside will be a help.

About the attic insulation - blown in cellulose can be a do-it-yourself job if you are careful. It is not hugely expensive, depending on the size of the attic.

 

[mommaof5]

This happened to us last summer. Our unit was only 5 years old but way to small for our house. Our builder put in the smallest unit he could. So I am all about buy a good unit that will last. We ended up going through Home Depot. They use a company that installs The Train brand which is really good. The price was way better through them than other companies. We did get a Train and it cost us 3700.00 dollars (we only had to replace the outside unit). My electric bill has gone WAY down. I won't know until July what we saved overall for the year but it has made a huge difference. We were not able to pay for it in cash so it was such a blessing that Home Depot offers the 1 year interest free. We have been paying monthly on it and will be paid for before the one year. I had to cut way back in other areas to come up with the monthly payment, but that was the solution for us.

 

[Chicky2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mommaof5 We did get a Train and it cost us 3700.00 dollars (we only had to replace the outside unit).

:

My dh just replaced 2 outdoor units for a man (not sure what brand, but they were from Grainger) for less than that, and he only charged $500 for labor.

 

[USAmma]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SleeplessMommy Even drapes on the inside will be a help. About the attic insulation - blown in cellulose can be a do-it-yourself job if you are careful. It is not hugely expensive, depending on the size of the attic.

We already have double paned glass windows and wood blinds but the area next to those windows still gets very hot. I talked to dh and we are going to do it ASAP. We can easily hang them from the wooden eves on that side of the house.

That works for the east windows, but the west facing one (luckily there's only one) has an eve that's way high up. We have a vaulted ceiling. The only option is to either affix screen material to the glass, or put holes in the stucco wall. Dh won't like the holes.

 

[USAmma]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chicky2 : My dh just replaced 2 outdoor units for a man (not sure what brand, but they were from Grainger) for less than that, and he only charged $500 for labor.

It gets so hot here, we really need the turbo units if they are to last. Our neighbor just paid 6 grand for his new unit, and he got a discount because it was his brother's company.