Given where we live, the question of extreme heat and how it plays a role in our air conditioning use is understandable. An air conditioner can only be so powerful, right?
Well here’s the good news–your air conditioner is literally designed to handle high heat. And depending on how efficient of a cooling system you have, yours might not ever struggle.
The not-so-great news is that the average air conditioner cannot cool effectively beyond about a 20° range to what the temperature is outside. This means if the temperature outside is in the triple digits and you’re setting your thermostat to 72°F, you’re probably going to be disappointed–and your air conditioner is just going to keep running as it tries to reach the temperature you set on the thermostat, which is really inefficient.
Aside from this temperature differential, there are other problems that high heat can cause. We’ll explore them below, but first we want to share our #1 tip to ensure that your air conditioner can indeed face this next summer of high heat!
