Arkansas HVACR NewsMagazine November 2022

News Magazine November 2022

FEATURE STORY

Unless you have a customer that is really into following this sort of thing, there is no need to bring up the subject. How do you explain it. “ Well, the Department of Energy decided that we should be more strict in evaluating HVAC equipment. The new standard resulted in a slightly lower result but the bottom line is that we still have a plethora of options. The choice is yours. ” The new standard for Arkansas is as follows: Split AC New SEER SEER 2 HSPF HSPF <45K 15 14.3 na na =>45K 14.5 13.8 na na Heat Pump New SEER SEER 2 HSPF HSPF 2 HP 15 14.3 8.8 7.5 So why do we care about all this fuss? Well there is one reason. Some enterprising person in the Department of Energy decided that permissible use of equipment would be based on DATE OF INSTALL. In the past we have always used date of manufacture. Here ’s the rub. If you have a piece of equipment that does not meet the new standard, it MAY NOT BE INSTALLED after January 1, 2023. What are you to do with that piece of equipment? Good question. Got a friend in Missouri? They can install it because they are in a different zone than Arkansas. Here ’s the raw side of the rub. Say you quote a job now for the equipment to be installed in December. The job called for a lower efficiency that will not meet the new standard; but, that is OK SPP 14 13.4 8 6.7

Beginning January 1, 2023, the HVACR industry faces yet another change. The SEER 2 world takes effect. Most of you already know but the whole concept of going from SEER 13 to SEER2 seems totally backwards — and rightfully so. SEER is not a rating on the same scale that we have used for decades. Rather, it is a new scale. A foot is no longer a foot, a yard no longer a yard, etc. Well that is just an example. SEER 2 is a new method of testing efficiency that is probably more honest in that it uses an External Static Pressure of 0.5 instead of the old 0.1. Basically, the blower has to work harder during the rating test and that gives it a more realistic result since no duct system has a 0.1 ESP. Now we ’ re not talking about friction rate which you use on your ductulator. ESP is where we start the process of determining friction but that is another story. Here's the bottom line. This new method of evaluating efficiency created a new standard of measurement for us. BUT THAT AIN ’ T NO BIG DEAL. We merely go by the new standard and sell accordingly. sEER 2 It ’ s about today not yesterday, unless!