Blog 2019-06-14T10:50:27+00:00

What’s The Deal With “SEER”

This Blog was posted by Smithson Valley Services Air Conditioning Repair. We serve the Texas Hill Country, including Blanco | Bulverde | Canyon Lake | Fisher | Kendalia | New Braunfels | North San Antonio | Sattler | Sisterdale | Smithson Valley | Spring Branch | Startzville

What’s The Deal With “SEER”

As with anything having to do with energy conservation seer is probably the least understood concept, both by homeowners and contractors. Simply put, seer stands for seasonal energy efficiency ratio. The resulting number applied to an air conditioner is called its seer rating. The higher the seer rating the more energy efficient a given air conditioner is. (we’re assuming for comparison purposes that all other variables are the same between the systems compared). Read some about AC Repair New Braunfels here

Here’s where the confusion begins: how high is high enough? Given a choice of 5 different seer ratings which one should you select? The answers provided to homeowners here are almost always incomplete, if not just plain wrong.

Let’s start by remembering that the most efficient air conditioner known to man is one that is in the “off” position. Period. The least
efficient air conditioner is one that runs continually, never shuts off and never cools the home. Between these two extremes are many
shades of gray that we will attempt to clarify here. Think of seer ratings the same way you do mpg ratings for automobiles, but instead
think of btu’s per watt.

Assuming that you are offered 4 choices of seer ratings that span the gulf between the federal minimum (13 seer) and the current extremely high (23 seer) and are left to fend for yourself in the selection process,let’s examine how you can make the right choice every time. (and there will always be just one right choice for you).

Your odds are much greater than 1 in 4. Chances are, you would be offered 2, 3, or 4 seer rating choices along with some limited and/or biased information about the best choice and finally settle after discovering that you haven’t been equipped with the right information to choose the one (and only one) right seer rating for your needs. Now for a little light math.

Seer is simply a formula that is described by the outcome of the following:

Divide the system’s rated BTU’s by its stated seer rating to determine how many watts it consumes per hour, (kwh stands for kilo-watt hour). Here’s the formula (we’ll use a 3-ton, 15 seer system for this comparison): 36,000 BTUs (3 tons) divided by 15 seer = 2400 (**remember this number**)

Not too bad so far (you are past the hardest part), but what does the outcome (2400) mean? This is simply the number of watts consumed each operating hour by the system.

The last step is to determine your annual operating cost to use as a basis of comparison to determine which of the multiple seer rating
choices you’ve been offered is best.

To do that we need to know how many hours, on average, your system will operate. While many factors are involved here let’s assume that you operate your system the way most people in your area do. This assumes that you: set your thermostat at or near 78 most of the time,
turn up off your system when you’re gone for 4 hours or more, change your filter about 40% less than you should, have the system tuned up periodically, live in a home of average insulation and have average quality windows.

Let’s agree to agree. If we can all agree that these relatively simple assumptions will form the basis for our comparison, let’s move to annual operating costs as an outcome of the seer rating.

Fortunately, a lot of study has been done to tell us how many hours our air conditioner will operate based on our geographical area and using the assumptions listed above. To keep it simple, we’ll use an average in Texas, or 2500 hours of operation hours annually.

Remember the number 2400 from above? That was the amount of watts our example 15 seer air conditioner consumed each hour it operated. Now that we know our number of operating hours annually (2500) we simply multiply these two numbers to get the total number of watts consumed annually.

Here’s how it works: 2400 hours of operation x 2500 watts consumed per hour = 6,000,0000? ? ? ? Now hold on just a minute. I know what you’re thinking – “You promised ‘light’ math and 6,000,000 is hardly light! ” you are correct, so let’s simplify. If you have a copy of your power bill handy, you’ll notice you are billed in increments they refer to as kwh. This is simply a unit of 1000 watts, which is how they calculate your bill. We need to convert our formula to theirs, which we will do by dividing the total watts consumed per hour (2500) by 1000, which equals 2.5 2500 divided by 1000 = 2.5. This new number (2.5) represents the number of watts your system consumes hourly, expressed in one thousand-watt units, or in this case, 2.5 of these thousand-watt units (kwh).

Now let’s go back to our previous calculation: 2400 hours of operation x 2.5 kwh consumed per hour = (ta da) 6000 kwh consumed by our example air conditioner annually.

(Don’t worry – at the end, I’ll give you a simple review calculation that will have you getting annual operating costs faster than a cat’s ear on a fly farm). Quick review: Here’s how we determine energy consumed (watts). Divide BTUs produced by the stated seer rating. ex. 36,000 (3 tons) divided by 15 seer = 2400 (watts). Convert this to a figure used by your power company to calculate your bill. ex.2400 watts divided by 1000 = 2.4 kwh (2.4 one thousand watt units). Determine the number of annual hours used by your air conditioner based on your geographical region. Ex. Texas air conditioners operate an average of 2500 hours annually.

Multiply the number of kwh your air conditioner consumes (2.4) each hour times the number of hours it operates annually (2500) to determine annual kwh usage. 2.4 kwh x 2500 hours annually = 6000 kw h annual consumption.

Home at last. Now all that is left is to convert these numbers to an annual cost of something we all know a thing or two about – dollars. To do that let’s look again at your power bill and determine the total cost per kwh. (hint – it will be between 10 – 12 cents around most Texas areas). This is your cost for each kwh your air conditioner (or any electronic appliance) consumes. Our studies show that customers pay 11.5 cents per kwh, including taxes, franchise fees, peak usage, feudalistic surcharges (just kidding), Mr. Power meter reader) etc.

6000 kwh consumed annually x 11.5 cents per kw h = 690 or $690.00. (enter it in your calculator exactly as 6000 x .115 to avoid confusing decimals and zeros).

Light speed review: 36,000 Btus divided by 15 seer = 2400
2400 divided by 1000 = 2.4 kw h consumed each hour
2500 hours of operation annually
2500 x 2.4 = 6000 kw h consumed annually
6000 x 11.5 cents cost per kwh = 690 or $690.00 annual cost of operation for a 3-ton, 15-seer air conditioner.

Use this quick formula for each seer option you are offered.

Let’s fast forward to the annual operating cost for each of the following using the same 3-ton system:
13 seer = $805.00
14 seer $747.50
16 seer = $632.50
23 seer = $448.50
3000 seer (just kidding – but can you do it? ? ). Get it right and we’ll knock an additional $75.00 off your price of any complete system.

You’ll notice when you divide 36,000 by 13 seer you get 2769.2307. Don’t be confused; just drop everything to the right of the decimal and round 2769 to 2800. You’ll be very, very close.

Now what? You now want to determine the one and only one seer rating that is right for you. The answer is simple, and here is what everyone leaves out: (signed non-disclosure required at this point – aw, what the heck)

Here is the most important variable you need to answer (not your salesman.) How long do you plan on owning and operating the system, or, how long will you live in the home the system is purchased for? This is the key to your decision because the shorter your ownership period the greater your total cost will be due to a shorter amortization time of the purchase price. (the fewer years you can spread the purchase price over before you no longer receive any operational benefits – genius, huh? ). Unfortunately, from my years in the field, this is seldom brought into the equation.

The time value of money is defined (by me) as the opportunity value of other investments missed because of your increased investment in a seer rating higher than 13. Huh? Let’s assume your system is broken and you need a new one. We know that 13 seer is the “floor” pricing because, assuming you shopped around, 13 seer ( from the past, now 14 seer )will be the lowest price you are offered as it is the federal minimum in terms of efficiency. Hence, it is the base or floor pricing.

Incremental what? Let’s assume your “floor” pricing is the pricing of a 13-seer system sold by xyz -ac contractor. That price is $4148. Let’s assume xyz -AC (or any contractor) offers 3 other seer options with installed pricing as follows:
14 seer – $4870
16 seer – $5925
23 seer – $8177
We don’t need to calculate the return on the 13 seer because you have no incremental increase in investment. After all, it is your “floor” pricing – everything else is compared to the 13 seer to determine if the increased price will pay itself back to you. Remember, your system is broken, and you need it replaced, so 13 seer is the choice everything else is compared to. Hence, the “incremental” increases are the price differences associated with any given (higher seer) system compared to the 13 seer system… Just the difference, not the total price.

*Hint – don’t let your contractor “assume” your existing system is a 6, 7 or 3 seer and compare the new one to it. This is a trick of
the trade that you want to avoid at all costs if you have to replace your air conditioner anyway. ) Make all comparisons to a 13-seer, and don’t let them play what I like to call the “make up a seer rating and play the investment shenanigans” game. No fun for you at all.

Let’s see what we have using the pricing above. Begin by comparing the 14 seer to the base pricing of the 13 seer.
13 seer – $4148
14 seer – $4870 -(now minimum federal government requirement for all southern states. )
The difference between the two is $722.00. I asked you earlier about your expected ownership period and that is the next variable in our search for true value. Let’s use 5 years because that is the number most quoted when homeowners are asked how many years they plan to live in their current residence. (the fact that they usually stay longer is irrelevant to us). That means the additional (incremental) increase to purchase the 14 seer over the 13 seer will cost you $722.00. This is the base number you are trying to determine whether or not it will be returned to you from the annual operating cost reduction achieved by the 1 point increase in seer rating.

Let’s look at the annual cost again to determine the savings achieved by the one-point advantage the 14 seer has over the 13 seer
13 seer = $805.00
14 seer $747.50
16 seer = $632.50
23 seer = $448.50
The 14 seer saves $805.00 – $747.50 = $57.50 over the 13 seer each year. Multiply this annual savings times your expected years of occupancy, and you have a grand total over our 5-year assumption that equals $287.50 (5 x $57.50=$287.50). This falls way short of the total incremental increase in floor pricing of $722.00 therefore based on seer rating alone, this would not be a good investment for only 5 years of ownership.

Be sure to factor in utility rebates and federal tax credits when calculating your return as these reduce your purchase price accordingly. There are federal and local utility enticements in place to make the higher seer rating options more attractive to homeowners. Using life pricing, these credits will generally smooth out the pricing difference to some degree, but that assumption can’t be made with all the pricing you’ll receive elsewhere. (there is another argument that can and will be made for the 14 seer, but for our purpose here, we are strictly confining the seer rating as your selection criteria. I have also ignored the opportunity cost of incremental price increases purposely*)

*Hint – don’t fall for another common trick whereby the 13-seer option is prohibitively priced to make the higher seer ratings seem like an outstanding value. The idea is to make higher seer ratings appear to provide lower incremental price increases, thereby unfairly enticing you to consider them. Avoid this shell game entirely by using the average of your 13 now 14 seer estimates to establish your floor pricing, throwing out any pricing from shell game antics.

When you purchase a new air conditioning system for your home, you may be offered a bewildering maze of options, including higher seer ratings. It is your contractor’s job to provide clear, concise information that will allow you to make a confident, informed choice about these options without resorting to the “trust me” principle. Call us if you are having trouble getting the answers you need and we will be happy to spend a few minutes with you, even if you are purchasing elsewhere.

For you financial types out there, actuarial data and time value are ignored here primarily because most of us don’t invest our savings but instead spend it on a discretionary basis on items of depreciating value. As a secondary issue, other roi comparisons for various consumer products don’t calculate these values either, serving to skew any comparison of products (of dissimilar nature) using unlike values of comparison. Thank you for visiting our new internet site. As an up-to-date business, we want to allow you to stay in touch with our company and our offers. A new content management system will enable us to always keep you up to date. In the meantime, you can reach us. We are looking forward to hearing from you. You can also contact us at our “contact” page from the menu on the left. If you are unfamiliar with our company and your first contact with us is online: we would be pleased to hear from you! Please let us know what your needs and questions are; we will be more than happy to help. In brief, you should know the following about us: our company was established in 2002 and has been responsible for providing outstanding air conditioning and refrigeration services ever since.

More Great HVAC Blogs here:
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https://www.alldirectoriesguide.com/ac-services-repair-maintenance-installation/
https://www.ckrfm.com/hvac-heating-ventilation-air-conditioning/
https://www.high927fm.com/air-conditioner-systems/
https://www.radiomarijasrbije.org/air-conditioner-ratings/
https://www.martincountysun.com/new-air-conditioning-systems/
https://www.portlandobserver.net/hvac-services-air-conditioner-filters/
https://www.kheavenam.com/room-air-conditioners/

Air Conditioning Services Canyon Lake Tx

This Blog was posted by Smithson Valley Services Air Conditioning. We serve the Texas Hill Country, including Blanco | Bulverde | Canyon Lake | Fisher | Kendalia | New Braunfels | North San Antonio | Sattler | Sisterdale | Smithson Valley | Spring Branch | Startzville

Air Conditioning Services Canyon Lake Tx

We thank you for considering our company as your next air conditioning repair service contractor. It’s our pleasure to have you here browsing our website. We realize that there are many other professional HVAC contractors you can work with. We hope to assist you in choosing the appropriate HVAC contractor support you need. Proudly helping our customers is our inspiration, and we’d love an opportunity to grant our HVAC services to you. When picking our company as your next air conditioning repair service contractor, you’ll get unmatched service at a very reasonable cost. Call Now Office: 210-202-8400

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The Way to Find The Right Heating Contractor

Deciding on the most suitable air conditioning repair service contractors is frightening. With lots of lousy, “take your hard-earned dollars” HVAC services on the market, obtaining trustworthy HVAC contractors you’ll be able to rely on is hard. Here are some tremendous essentials to consider to be able to make that last determination of who your next HVAC supplier will be. The most significant criterion is that they’re insured and licensed. If you happen to start using an HVAC contractor without these key accreditations, you are taking unneeded gambles that might lead to costing you a great deal. Being confident your air conditioning repair service contractor is thoroughly licensed and insured is primary and needs to become your priority.

One more thing to search out is sensible prices. Not too low, but not too pricey. Loads of HVAC contractors in the market will present “a bottom-of-the-barrel price” to get you used to them. Once they have you inside their grasp, they will almost definitely bang you with ridiculous price levels, which you could have no choice but to pay. This kind of plan is much more well-known in today’s world, so it is advisable to stay clear of these HVAC firms. Finding the highest quality help with your HVAC need and being swindled all comes down to your decision when picking your HVAC contractors. So do your homework, and ensure that the air conditioning repair service contractors you choose to comply with these general elements.

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New House – Get The Best Fitting HVAC System

This Blog was posted by Smithson Valley Services Air Conditioning. We serve the Texas Hill Country, including Blanco | Bulverde | Canyon Lake | Fisher | Kendalia | New Braunfels | North San Antonio | Sattler | Sisterdale | Smithson Valley | Spring Branch | Startzville

New House – Get The Best Fitting HVAC System

You have designed a custom home; there is not other one like it anywhere, congratulations! It is customized to the exact specifications that you have chosen. It is your design and something to be very proud of. The next step is to call a heating repair contractor. Before you get all excited or stressed, this is a necessary step when building your own home. More on this webpage
The heating repair contractor will go over your plans with you, the specifications, and the layout. Then he will sit down with you and advise you on the best heating (and cooling) source for your new home. Heating and air conditioning are the major components in making a home comfortable. If you live in a frigid climate, you will want to ensure that each room stays comfortably warm on those cold nights.

Heating repair contractors can also advise you on the best heating unit, the size that you should have and he will also know which models are more affordable and energy efficient. They can also advise you if the extra cost of heating your garage, duct work and other supplies are worth the extra expense.

The heating contractor will also obtain any and all permits required before they begin any work on your new home. After the job is complete, he should also be willing to thoroughly check and test the system to ensure that it runs properly and that there are no leaks in the duct work.

Believe it or not, heating contractors can also inform you which doors, windows, and siding will be more beneficial in keeping warm air during the winter months. Of course, the professionals that install the doors and windows and siding can also tell you this, but the heating contractor will be less biased, as he is not making any money from the products.

Remember, you will need future heating repair services, so make sure you choose a very reputable contractor, someone who is both dedicated and professional. This will benefit both of you in the end. As he is the one who installed your heating unit, he will also be the one to do any maintenance and repairs on it. If he does an excellent job doing the installation, then you know he will continue his excellent service when he does the routine maintenance, cleaning, and repairs.

You have a custom-built home, something to be very proud of; why not take pride in the heating system installed in your home? This is just as important, if not more so than any other product you will install in your new home.