( This Old House ) - Nothing in your house affects your comfort more than your heating and cooling systems. Boilers are efficient and provide a gentle heat that can feel more comfortable to certain people. Heat pumps - heat pumps work very differently from traditional combustion heating systems in that they don't generate any heat at all; instead, they transfer heat from one location to another. Geothermal systems give back 3 to 4 units of energy for every 1 unit they expend, so they are the most energy efficient systems you can have.
Comfort Institute Special Report # 3, How To Identify A Good Heating and Cooling Contractor , explains step by step how you can identify a good one, and disqualify the bad ones. A contract automatically ensures that your HVAC contractor will provide "pre-season" tune-ups before each cooling and heating season. Regularly change (or clean if reusable) HVAC filters every month during peak cooling or heating seasons.
The blue band shows the efficiency when cooling, and the red band shows the efficiency when heating. There are also two energy consumption figures - blue for cooling and red for heating. As the name implies, the term reverse cycle means that the operation of the air conditioner can be internally reversed to provide indoor heating or cooling as required - the principle used for both modes is the same.
However, using a small electric heater for local heating may be cheaper and have lower emissions than heating a much larger area with gas. Reverse cycle air conditioning (or heat pumps) provides convective heat and is the most energy efficient electric heater. The most efficient 5-6 star units may be cheaper to run and generate lower greenhouse gas emissions than gas heaters. An efficient externally flued heater is usually preferable but may not always be an option, particularly for tenants.
Your participating contractor will perform an engineering analysis which assesses your home's Heating Services Albany or cooling needs. Based on the analysis, the contractor will recommend the correct sized energy efficient equipment for the project. The participating contractor will install your new energy efficient equipment or perform a qualified tune-up service. It can adjust temperatures at odd hours or when you are not home, saving you as much as 20 percent on your heating costs. You need to work out what size you require for the task and then choose the most efficient model that will perform the task.
Beginning September 2006, Federal efficiency standards will require that conventional heat pumps have an HSPF rating of at least 7.7 in addition to a SEER rating of at least 13.0. The most efficient air source heat pumps have an HSPF rating between 9.0 and 10.0 and a SEER above 14 or so. Heat pumps are sized for either the heating demand or cooling demand, depending on which implies the larger unit (almost always cooling). Ground source heat pumps (GSHPs) are more efficient and less noisy than conventional air-source heat pumps.
Comfort Institute Special Report # 3, How To Identify A Good Heating and Cooling Contractor , explains step by step how you can identify a good one, and disqualify the bad ones. A contract automatically ensures that your HVAC contractor will provide "pre-season" tune-ups before each cooling and heating season. Regularly change (or clean if reusable) HVAC filters every month during peak cooling or heating seasons.
The blue band shows the efficiency when cooling, and the red band shows the efficiency when heating. There are also two energy consumption figures - blue for cooling and red for heating. As the name implies, the term reverse cycle means that the operation of the air conditioner can be internally reversed to provide indoor heating or cooling as required - the principle used for both modes is the same.
However, using a small electric heater for local heating may be cheaper and have lower emissions than heating a much larger area with gas. Reverse cycle air conditioning (or heat pumps) provides convective heat and is the most energy efficient electric heater. The most efficient 5-6 star units may be cheaper to run and generate lower greenhouse gas emissions than gas heaters. An efficient externally flued heater is usually preferable but may not always be an option, particularly for tenants.
Your participating contractor will perform an engineering analysis which assesses your home's Heating Services Albany or cooling needs. Based on the analysis, the contractor will recommend the correct sized energy efficient equipment for the project. The participating contractor will install your new energy efficient equipment or perform a qualified tune-up service. It can adjust temperatures at odd hours or when you are not home, saving you as much as 20 percent on your heating costs. You need to work out what size you require for the task and then choose the most efficient model that will perform the task.
Beginning September 2006, Federal efficiency standards will require that conventional heat pumps have an HSPF rating of at least 7.7 in addition to a SEER rating of at least 13.0. The most efficient air source heat pumps have an HSPF rating between 9.0 and 10.0 and a SEER above 14 or so. Heat pumps are sized for either the heating demand or cooling demand, depending on which implies the larger unit (almost always cooling). Ground source heat pumps (GSHPs) are more efficient and less noisy than conventional air-source heat pumps.