Secure Home Services Describes Eco-Friendly Way to Cool Your Home

Heating and air conditioning technology has come a long way from the days of AC units using inefficient, ozone-depleting refrigerants.  Today’s air conditioning units use programmable thermostats, two-stage compressors, scroll compressors and more, all as a way to drive energy efficiency and, ultimately, lower your home’s energy costs.

Just how efficient are today’s cooling units compared to air conditioners from ten to twenty years ago? Based on statistics provided by energy.gov (http://energy.gov/), the best units in today’s market use 30% to 50% less energy (http://energy.gov/energysaver/articles/central-air-conditioning) than AC units made in the mid-1970s.  More impressively, today’s AC units can save 20% to 40% on energy costs compared to units from just ten years ago.

What exactly is the SEER system and why you need to know about it. (http://www.acdoctor.com/get-educated/be-efficient/whats-a-seer/)

The SEER rating system, also known as the Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating system, is a grading system that provides an energy efficiency rating for cooling and heating systems.  

The higher a SEER rating an air conditioner has, the more energy efficient the unit is.  A SEER rating of 13 higher is a strong rating for the energy efficiency of a given air conditioning  unit.  A worthwhile note to add, in 2006, the United States mandated that all new air conditioning units would have to be at least SEER-13 or higher (http://www.acdoctor.com/get-educated/be-efficient/whats-a-seer/).

How do newer, more energy efficient AC units translate into savings for a homeowner?

The most common reason why homeowners choose not to invest in a new AC unit and choose instead to keep their ten or twenty year old unit is because of upfront cost.  Yes, it costs money to buy a new AC unit, and sometimes all that money must be provided upfront by the consumer.  

However, what many homeowners fail to calculate is the long-term savings that come with newer, more efficient heating and cooling units.  Obviously the exact amount of energy savings depends on how much a homeowner uses their heating and cooling units.  Perhaps even more importantly, the homeowner will also save Green House Gases from being released into the atmosphere.

Naturally, homeowners need to budget the upfront costs of buying a new heating or cooling unit. However, some heating and cooling unit providers are providing convenient ways of making it easier to afford better, more-efficient AC and heating units.   

Secure Home Services (http://securehomeservices.ca/), a Canadian provider of eco-friendly, high-efficient AC and heating units, is one company (https://twitter.com/shsedm) that offers heating and cooling units through monthly payment plans.  With a service area that extends throughout Ontario and into Alberta, Secure Home Services offers two-stage gas furnaces and efficient AC units that run on EPA-approved R410 refrigerant.  

With annual energy costs only increasing, Secure Home Services is making inroads on helping consumers in Canada take advantage of the latest residential cooling and heating technology.

“Today’s heating and cooling units are not only more eco-friendly than ever before, they are also more energy efficient and can help homeowners save a significant amount of money on their energy costs,” says Secure Home Services’ Michael Stedman.

“Secure Home Services has two important mandates (https://about.me/securehomeservices) — communicate to our customers just how much money can be saved by replacing old AC and gas furnaces. Second, by offering monthly financial plans, we want to make it more convenient for homeowners to take advantage of savings from new, more efficient units.”

How to know when it’s time to replace your old AC or heating unit?

It’s fairly clear just how much savings newer heating and cooling units provide consumers.  However, for those who are looking for more specific forms of guidance, Energy Star provides a helpful resource.  

Energy Star’s website describes a number of telltale signs (https://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=heat_cool.pr_checklist_consumers) that indicate when it’s time for you to replace your old cooling or heating unit.  If your furnace is over 15 years old and if your AC unit is over 10 years old; if some parts of your room are too hot or too cold; if your heating and cooling systems run noisy; if your equipment needs frequent repairs.  

In these situations, instead of repairing your old system, it may be best to start thinking about buying a new one and taking advantage of the energy savings that comes with it.