Where did my energy efficiency go? Unfortunately in most cases it was never there, because in most cases the majority of the contractors sell on price rather than on value. As a result, it has cost American consumers thousands of dollars in wasted energy and will continue to happen until we become educated on how our heating cooling systems are being installed and maintained.
Here are a few examples of studies that were conducted to substantiate this problem...
NORTH CAROLINA ALTERNATIVE ENERGY CORP. LAKELAND ELECTRIC AND WATER
TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY
HONEYWELL CORPORATION
Based upon an actual field survey, it was determined that 90% of the systems tested showed problems in efficiency and were operating below manufacturers specifications; 70% were improperly charged; 60% had inadequate airflow; and more than 80% were operating in adverse conditions, resulting in excessive energy consumption and early mechanical failures.
Lakeland Electric and Water and the Florida Solar Energy Center’s research team found that by repairing leaking duct systems, cooling energy was reduced by an average of 18%.
Test results showed that the Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio of a unit decreased from 9.6 to 8 with a 10% refrigerant undercharge.
Engineers found that almost 50% of the available efficiency from a heat pump is lost after 20 years of use due to deterioration of the heat transfer surfaces. If the system had an efficiency of 5 - EER when new, it could have an efficiency of less than 3 - EER if not properly maintained even if a high efficiency filter was used.