The department of water and power here charges more for electricity during certain times of the day when the demand is the highest. Since AC is the biggest energy consumer in our apartment that isn’t mandatory to keep on (like the fridge), we turn it off during the peak demand hours to save money.
If OP’s plan is similar to mine, there are three pricing periods during the day: standard rate charged in the morning/early afternoon, highest rate charged during peak hours of the afternoon, and then a discounted rate charged in the evening/night.
The idea is to encourage people to do energy intensive tasks like running dishwashers and laundry at night when the demand on the grid is lowest.
ETA: Sorry, to actually answer your question, yes you could blast the AC early in the day to “pre-cool” for the peak hours. My ecobee is linked with my utility account to sync with the different pricing periods and does exactly that.
The department of water and power here charges more for electricity during certain times of the day when the demand is the highest. Since AC is the biggest energy consumer in our apartment that isn’t mandatory to keep on (like the fridge), we turn it off during the peak demand hours to save money.
Can you blast the AC earlier instead of later?
That’s what we do! Unfortunately the apartment was built in the 60s and has absolute shit insulation and single pane windows, so it only does so much.
If OP’s plan is similar to mine, there are three pricing periods during the day: standard rate charged in the morning/early afternoon, highest rate charged during peak hours of the afternoon, and then a discounted rate charged in the evening/night.
The idea is to encourage people to do energy intensive tasks like running dishwashers and laundry at night when the demand on the grid is lowest.
ETA: Sorry, to actually answer your question, yes you could blast the AC early in the day to “pre-cool” for the peak hours. My ecobee is linked with my utility account to sync with the different pricing periods and does exactly that.