Gas or Electric?

It used to be a no contest with the majority of people wanting Gas. They felt that it offered a more efficient heat with a good price. Well that is no longer true. Natural / Propane gas prices have risen drastically. With the high efficiency of electric heat pumps, it is very hard to tell the difference.

With that said, let us go over some terminology that you will come across.

What does SEER / EER mean?

One way to rate a unit is by what is called its SEER rating. SEER stands for seasonal  energy efficiency ratio. The higher the SEER rating, the more energy efficient the equipment is. This can result in lower energy costs. Many energy companies like to have a 10 SEER or better.

What is a BTU?

BTU stands for the British Thermal Unit (Btu). It is a unit of heat energy in the inch-pound unit system, which is common today in the United States. The Btu is defined as the amount of heat necessary to raise the temperature of one pound of water one degree Fahrenheit from 58.5 to 59.5.

A Btu is commonly used to indicate the heating and cooling capacity of a system, heat losses, and heat gains. To give an example of system capacity, a 10,000 Btu window air conditioner is capable of removing 10,000 Btu's of heat per hour. To give an example in terms of heat gains, the typical heat gain added to a room by a person at rest is about 230 Btu/hour.

What is a Ton?

A ton is the unit of measurement for air-conditioning system capacity. One ton of air conditioning removes 12,000 Btu's of heat energy per hour from a home. Central air conditioners are sized in tons. Residential units usually range from 1 to 5 tons.

There are other terms that you may hear about but this is the basics.

What size unit should I use?

Sizing a HVAC unit depends on such variables as geographic location, orientation to the sun, construction details, insulation values, window area and type, insulation, etc. Under sizing a system may lead to warmer or cooler temperatures than desired and over sizing the system may lead humidity or moisture control problems as well as what is called short cycling. This is where your unit turn on and off frequently making it inefficient.

The old rule of thumb was 600 square feet per ton, but with so many high ceilings and other variables, it is best to have a HVAC contractor come out and size it correctly.

Which Brand?

We do not get caught up in the name brand game with HVAC.. I have seen high priced, top of the line name brands unit become worthless in two years. I have also seen units that you would not recognize that are still going strong after 15 years. What is important is service.

Some HVAC contractors will use a certain brand because of the price / commission they get for pushing that brand. I like the using the contractor that picks his unit based upon service call history he has had with a particular unit.

National X brand with a 12 SEER that cost $5500.00 to install is no better than Generic  Y brand with a 12 SEER that cost $3200.00 to install, both having the same warranty. 

This is just one of the ways that we are able to put equity into the pockets of our custom clientele, we educate them and let them decide what they want to use.  If we feel a certain brand is truly better then we advise them.

We can not end the HVAC topic without speaking about insulation. You can have the best HVAC system and doors and windows on the market, however if you have no insulation or insulation that has been improperly installed, then you are throwing money away.

I can not emphasis enough about the importance of properly insulating your home.  There are many homes that are under insulated and there are a few that have become to air tight, which can create even more problems with mold and mildew.

Click here, Insulation, for more information about this topic.