Ok, Im a little upset. I have an ac w a remote that the guest can control when they are in their detached guesthouse. I do have a sign next to the door that says;when you leave for the day please turn the ac off. I have guests who are here for a week and everyday when they leave, they leave the ac on…and they are gone for 10 hrs!I dont care if they blast it when they are in the unit, but when they are gone for ten hrs?I am furious;I think that is so rude.Should I send them a text and remind them to turn the ac off when they leave for the day?My electric bill will go up 100 at least…this is my no 1 pet peeve!
You can get a timer for this! I bet you would be able to control it remotely.
Please do give them a bad review over this.
I hope some of the geeks can answer about the timer, lock or remote.
You should be able to lock it or have it go off at a certain time.
Ok, I recently talked to my AC repair man about this. He said that unless you are able to leave the ac off for at least 3 days, it is actually cheaper and more efficient to leave it on. ACs do more than cool the air, they remove the humidity from the air, walls, furniture, etc. So for that 10 hours it’s off, it may take 6 hours of continuous running to remove all the moisture from the room. And, it may take half that long for the room to get comfortable again. So ask your guests to turn the temperature up a few degrees when they leave, but you actually may be doing more harm than good to your utility bill anyway!
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When I had AC in my old apartment it had a sensor that detects movement and if after x amount of time has passed it would switch off till it saw movement again.
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This is a little window unit. It’s low tech but there is a remote, which is hilarious since it’s right there in front of you. This isn’t a central big AC thing. Nevertheless, the little window unit WILL drive the bill up substantially. The guests are leaving it on so they can walk into a cool place.
This is a big problem for hosts because the AC bill will be more than the income from the rental in some cases. The answer is, just hike the rental price to cover it.
yes, its just a small wall unit with a remote. Should I remind them to please turn the ac off when they leave for the day?They are going to be here for 4 more days.If they were just here a day or 2 I wouldnt stress it but they are here a week; There is a sign posted by the door to please turn the ac off when you leave. Besides, it only takes maybe 5 minutes to cool the room down ;its not like they have to wait an hr to cool it down!
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No, sorry I dont believe the ac repairman. My electric bill skyrockets when the ac is left on continuously! Humidity is not much of an issue here.
I’ve been struggling with AC issues this summer too. The upstairs of our house is the Airbnb part. There is a living room that is open to below and the intake vent is in the open hallway. The bedrooms stay nicely cool if their door are closed, but the open area is at least 10 degrees higher.
I thought I had it all worked out with the right temperatures, and then we got the bill for July. Instead of the usual $350, it was almost $650. Holy %^#& of ^@%&*. There goes my tiny profit from this month.
It’s been so slow here this summer I might just shut down my Airbnb for the next month, and consider closing next summer too. We are in Houston, btw… built on a swamp.
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Signs mean nothing. People are on holiday. They don’t care. They’re absorbed in what they’re doing. This is a difficult issue to tackle. Some in our desert complex say “$200 surcharge for summer months” for long stays. For you, I would just bump up the daily rate with the notion that they will leave the AC on the entire time and just grit your teeth 
gosh thats awful.Here in California there are a LOT of hosts that do not have ac,now I know why!They only offer a fan. I put in AC because I wanted the guest to be comfortable, but I didnt expect them to abuse it. I think in addition to the extra big sign I will be putting by the door, on the walk through I will just tell them;feel free to blast the ac as much as you want when you are here; when you leave for the day PLEASE turn the ac off! I also added the blurb about the ac twice on my website(people dont read thats why I am going to also tell them in person!)
too late to raise then rate, I am all booked for the summer,next summer rates are going to be going up for sure!
Oh yes. Just bump it up and they can run the darned AC to their heart’s content. And don’t be stingy with yourself.
I would tell them for sure. It’s in your house rules so they are breaking them. I would also tell these and future guests that you reserve the right to enter the unit to turn it off it if it has been left on.
Disagree with Wang once again who says that because they are on holiday they get to do as they please and waste energy. Even hotels have auto shut off.
Raising your rates to cover thiis cost you are supposed to eat is ridiculous. You’re booked already and cannot do that. And it is besides the point. They are breaking the rules and disrespecting you. JUST NO.
It’s not unreasonable to ask that this be shut off when not in use. Be emphatic!
Look into getting a remote that will allow you to shut it off from inside your house,
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and honestly; they are a guest, I am their host. If I am a guest in someones house I would NEVER think of doing that!This issue has bothered me so much I am seriously considering getting out of the business; and now I really hate this couple!
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That’s a good idea. My units have remotes, I could keep them in my house and crank the temp up several degrees when people leave.
Same here. Two rooms connected by a bath each with a window AC, both left on all day all night.
We don’t allow the guests to control the temperature. At Home Depot, for about $16, there is a plastic lockable box that you can install over a thermostat. Not sure if you have this kind of setup or it it’s a unit with controls.
Anyway, I know you are venting here and may use different words when talking to guests, but the word “blast” sounds like the AC is going gangbusters and it’s 53 degrees inside.
Maybe you should try putting thoughts in their head (I mention this a LOT). “We find it is very comfortable at 76 degrees” or “Since you are out most of the day, 78 degrees is perfect when you leave in the morning, you will miss the heat of the day and when you return in the evening you could set it back to 76 and it will be comfortable all night!” By letting them know a particular range - and that they can adjust it when gone - they will most likely use a setting similar to your suggestion.
ok, BUT if they are leaving, why dont they just turned the damn ac off? Like I said, it only takes 5 minutes to cool the room down when you come in; they cant wait 5 minutes?
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How about OFF. I think that is what she is saying. Turn it off! No reason ac should be running when no one is home, especially when it’s in her house rules.