New Efficiency Standard of 13 SEER starting 2006
All heating
and air conditioning
equipment is supplied with a manufacturer’s rating of the energy efficiency.
The current minimum standard for air conditioners and heat pumps is a 10
Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating (SEER). This has been the standard for
many years, and equipment with this rating represents the vast majority of
residential air conditioning installed in the United States. Starting
January 1st of 2006 the Department of Energy has ruled that any new
equipment installed must meet a new minimum efficiency of 13 SEER. According
to DOE studies the change from a 10 SEER to 13 SEER represents a 30%
increase in air conditioning or heat pump energy efficiency. This is good
news for your electric bill!
However, to achieve this new standard requires changes to the equipment.
Generally speaking the new efficiency standard is going to be achieved in
two ways. The first change is going to be in compressors. New technology
compressors run quiet and provide excellent efficiency and durability. The
second way to increase the equipment’s efficiency is to increase the size of
the evaporator and condenser coils in the system. The new compressors and
larger coils will mean an increase in the cost of the equipment. Another
factor in the cost of installation is size of the line set in the equipment.
In many cases involving a retrofit, the old size line set may be inadequate
for the larger coils and refrigerant charge of new equipment. Finally,
another factor involving the cost of the installation could be the
thermostat. Many new systems come with diagnostic control boards. A new
digital thermostat can take advantage of the diagnostics and cut down on
maintenance calls or diagnostic time. This means savings for the consumer
and peace of mind to know their equipment is running properly.
As more manufactures change from production of 10 SEER equipment to 13 SEER
equipment the consumer should see some savings in the price, but the overall
cost of all heat and air equipment will rise beginning this year. The price
of metal continues to impact the cost of equipment and as stated in the
paragraph above, the 13 SEER equipment is normally larger than the
comparable 10 SEER equipment (i.e. more metal in manufacturing). So, in
conclusion there is going to be a trade off facing builders, homeowners and
heat and air contractors in the near future. The technology to save 30% on
energy consumption will be the standard as mandated by the Department of
Energy. But, to achieve that energy savings will impact the upfront cost of
installation.
What Is Seer?
SEER stands for Season Energy Efficiency Ratio. This is a rating system
used by the US Government to establish the efficiency level of cooling
equipment. The higher the SEER rating, the less electricity the equipment
uses and the more efficient it is. SEER is determined by dividing the
cooling capacity, measured in BTUh, of a continuously operating air
conditioner by the electric power input, measured in WATTs, of power
consumed.
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