and if you re getting ready to flip the ac on, here s a fact to keep in mind. average american family spend $400 between june and august alone just cooling their homes. abc s linzie janis has more on how to slash the bill. the spurs are the 2014 nba champions. reporter: last night san antonio beat the heat on the court. and now, becky torres and her san antonio family are trying to beat the heat at home. you use your air conditioner a lot, i m assuming. yes, i do. reporter: they spend a hefty $130 every month to keep cool. but thanks to a new and free gadget from her local energy company, that s about to change. i m excited. i can t wait to start saving money. reporter: this think eco smart ac kit connects to your air conditioning unit might make it smarter and save you money. allowing you to control your ac from your smart phone, when you
are away from home and you forget to turn it up or off. and within seconds oh, awesome. it s off. reporter: so it s completely free and it s going to save you money. and it was easy. reporter: why give these devices away for free? during peak times the energy company can remotely raise the temperature on your ac by up to 3 degrees. helping them manage demand and prevent blackouts. and if you don t like it, you have the ability to override it. patrick. hello. reporter: patrick vick has been using the gadget on an ac unit in his bedroom as well as another system called nest that lets him control his central air. we ll do over $1,000 a year in savings. reporter: you can save too. utility providers in new york and baltimore are offering free smart ac kits. and direct energy is offering rebates on the nest thermostat in ohio and illinois. with new jersey, new york, and pennsylvania to come.
and pennsylvania to come. in all the torres will beat the heat and save $250 this year. that s right. the torres family will save $250 just this year. if your energy company doesn t offer one of the smart ac kits for free, you can buy one online starting from about $50. which means, it will pay for itself in just one summer. linzie janis, abc news, new york. that cell phone got a little more powerful right there. not sure how i feel about a company being able to come in and turn down your thermostat by 3 degrees. although i would like it. always forget. running out with the kids. i never turn the ac down. but pie problem is i have individual units in the home i m in right now, so i have to buy they re $50 a pop. so i would have five rooms, so you could save catch if you turn it down a little bit. quit a bit. coming up, it is the ultimate date. oh, hello. i just missed that. from my days as a construction worker.
in all the torres will beat the heat and save $250 this year. that s right. the torres family will save $250 just this year. if your energy company doesn t offer one of the smart ac kits for free, you can buy one online starting from about $50. which means, it will pay for itself in just one summer. linzie janis, abc news, new york. that cell phone got a little more powerful right there. not sure how i feel about a company being able to come in and turn down your thermostat by 3 degrees. although i would like it. always forget. running out with the kids. i never turn the ac down. but pie problem is i have individual units in the home i m in right now, so i have to buy they re $50 a pop. so i would have five rooms, so you could save catch if you turn it down a little bit. quit a bit. coming up, it is the ultimate date. oh, hello. i just missed that. from my days as a construction worker.
from your smart phone, when you are away from home and you forget to turn it up or off. and within seconds oh, awesome. it s off. reporter: why give these devices away for free? during peak times the energy company can remotely raise the temperature on your ac by up to 3 degrees. helping them manage demand and prevent blackouts. and if you don t like it, you have the ability to override it. patrick. hello. reporter: patrick vick has been using the gadget on an ac unit in his bedroom as well as another system called nest that lets him control his central air. we ll do over $1,000 a year in savings. reporter: you can save too. utility providers in new york and baltimore are offering free smart ac kits. and direct energy is offering rebates on the nest thermostat in ohio and illinois. with new jersey, new york,