Whether you’re on the market for a new air conditioner or you’re trying to better understand the performance of your current cooling system, one of the most important things you’ll have to look at is an air conditioner’s SEER rating. Today we’re going to talk all about SEER ratings and how to use them to figure out the efficiency of an air conditioner!
What is an air conditioner’s SEER rating?
An air conditioner’s SEER rating is similar to a car’s MPG (miles per gallon) rating. Whereas an MPG rating measures how efficiently a car uses the gas it consumes, a SEER rating measures how efficiently an air conditioner uses the electricity it consumes.
SEER stands for Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio. It is a measurement of the cooling output of an air conditioner divided by the amount of energy it consumes over a typical cooling season. A higher SEER rating means a unit is more efficient and will be less expensive to operate. SEER ratings were developed by the Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute and are the standard efficiency ratings used by the HVAC industry.
What’s a good air conditioner SEER rating for my home?
The SEER rating that’s right for your home will depend on how big of an investment you want to make. In general, the higher the SEER rating of an air conditioner, the more it will cost you up-front. However, you will recover much of the higher installation costs in energy savings over the lifetime of the unit.
In order to give you a frame of reference for a SEER rating, consider the following:
- As of January 23, 2006, the government requires all newly manufactured air conditioners to have a SEER rating of at least 13. These air conditioners are about 30 percent more efficient than the previous required SEER rating of 10.
- In order to qualify for federal tax credits, air conditioners must have a SEER rating of at least 16.
- High-efficiency air conditioners are available with SEER ratings in the 20’s.
If you have any questions about the SEER rating of an air conditioner, or if you’d like a cooling system serviced or installed in your home, contact Tiger, your Glen Carbon plumbing, heating and air conditioning company.
As homeowners become more conscious about how much energy they consume, many people are looking for energy-efficient alternatives to traditional home appliances. One such example is a tankless water heater. According to the Department of Energy, a tankless water heater can save you 24-34% off of water heating costs if your home uses 41 gallons of water per day or less. So what exactly is a tankless water heater and how does it work to provide your home with hot water?
What is a tankless water heater?
With traditional water heaters, water is stored in a large tank and heated so that you have hot water ready when you need it. Energy is constantly used to keep the water in this tank at a specific temperature, even when hot water is not in use. The amount of energy that is used to keep a storage tank hot when it’s not in use is known as “standby loss.”
Tankless water heaters were introduced as a way to avoid the standby losses associated with traditional water heaters. Instead of heating a tank of hot water, these units heat water on-demand whenever you need it. Without a tank to keep warm, tankless water heaters use little to no energy when hot water is not being used in your home.
It’s important to note that because tankless water heaters have a decreased flow rate, they aren’t ideal for everybody. Contact Tiger if you need some help deciding if a tankless unit is right for you!
How does a tankless water heater work?
Tankless water heaters are connected to your home’s plumbing system and typically mounted on a wall. When there is a need for hot water in your home, the unit immediately turns on its heat source. The two most common heat sources for tankless water heaters are gas and electricity.
Once the heat source is turned on, the heat exchanger inside of the unit heats up. As cold water enters the unit, it absorbs heat from the heat exchanger and is delivered to the tap that is calling for hot water. Any flue gasses that are produced during the heating process are vented directly out of your home.
When hot water is no longer needed, the unit shuts off and remains inactive until the next time someone needs hot water in your home.
If you have any questions about how a tankless water heater works, or if you’d like a plumbing system serviced or installed in your home, contact Tiger, your Glen Carbon area plumbing, heating and air conditioning company.
photo credit: c3k
There are all kinds of upgrades you can make to your HVAC system that make your home more comfortable, healthy and efficient. One of the most popular (and inexpensive) of those upgrades is to install a programmable thermostat. So, what are programmable thermostats and how can you benefit from installing one in your home?
What is a programmable thermostat?
A programmable thermostat is a thermostat that stores temperature settings for specific times of day and days of the week. During those time periods, the thermostat automatically adjusts the temperature in your home according to your saved settings without you having to even think about it.
For most homeowners, programmable thermostats are used to program different temperature settings during the times of day when their families are at home, at school/work or sleeping.
What are the benefits of installing a programmable thermostat?
- Adjust your thermostat settings automatically. After you initially save the temperature settings in a programmable thermostat, your home’s temperatures will change automatically throughout the day. That means you’ll never have to worry about forgetting to change your home’s temperatures.
- Have your temperature settings ready when you want them. Would you like your home to be at a specific temperature right when you wake up or get home from work? With a programmable thermostat, you can time your settings just right so those temperatures will be ready for you instead of waiting for your HVAC system to catch up.
- Conserve energy. There’s no sense in spending extra money on heating or cooling your home when nobody is there. In addition, we don’t need our furnaces or air conditioners as much during the hours that we’re sleeping. A programmable thermostat will automatically adjust your thermostat settings during those hours of the day so that you can conserve energy and cut back on your utility bills.
- Extend the life of your HVAC system. By easing the load on your HVAC system when your family is away from home or sleeping, you put less stress on your furnace and air conditioner. This can really pay off over time because it extends the life of your equipment.
If you have any questions about a programmable thermostat, or if you’d like your heating or cooling system serviced or installed in your home, contact Tiger today!
photo credit: mason13a
