ENERGY STAR®
What You Should Know about ENERGY STAR®
The government-backed symbol for energy efficiency, providing simple, credible, and unbiased information that consumers and businesses rely on to make well-informed decisions. Thousands of industrial, commercial, utility, state, and local organizations—including more than 40 percent of the Fortune 500®—rely on their partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to deliver cost-saving energy efficiency solutions. Together, since 1992, ENERGY STAR and its partners have helped save American families and businesses $430 billion on their energy bills.
ENERGY STAR is the simplest choice for energy efficiency, making it easy for consumers and businesses to purchase products that save them money and protect the environment. EPA ensures that each product that earns the label is independently certified to deliver the quality, performance, and savings that consumers have come to expect. It’s that integrity that led Americans to purchase more than 300 million ENERGY STAR certified products in 2015, with a sales value of more than $100 billion.
- energystar. gov
EER
What You Should Know about EER
Each air conditioner has an energy efficiency rating that lists how many BTU’s per hour are used for each watt of power it draws. For room air conditioners, this rating is the Energy Efficiency Ratio, or EER. For central air conditioners, this rating is the Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio, or SEER. These ratings are posted on an Energy Guide Label, which must be attached in a visible place on all new air conditioners. Many AC manufacturers are voluntary participants in the Energy Star labeling program. Energy Star labeled appliances indicate that high EER and SEER ratings.
The air conditioner EER is its British thermal units (BTU) rating over its wattage. For example, if a 10,000-BTU air conditioner consumes 1,200 watts, its rating is 8.3 (10,000 BTU/1,200 watts). The higher the rating is, the more efficient the air conditioning unit is. However, a higher rating is usually accompanied by a higher price.
- Air and Water
SEER
What You Should Know about SEER
The efficiency of central air conditioning systems is rated by a Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER). In general, the higher the SEER, the less electricity the system needs to do its job. SEER is a mathematically determined ratio of the total cooling capacity during normal periods of operation (not to exceed 12 months) divided by the total electric energy input during the same time-period.
Great strides have been made in the last 10 years to increase the efficiency of new air conditioners and heat pumps. SEER ratings for air conditioning and air-source heat pump systems manufactured today range from 13 SEER to 24 SEER, with the highest numbers indicating the most efficient units that offer the most energy savings year after year. The government in 1992 established the minimum seasonal energy efficiency standard for units manufactured in the United States at 10 SEER. The minimum SEER value changed again on January 23, 2006 to 13 SEER.
- A.H.R.I.