Energy conservation is a hot topic among homeowners in Cottleville, Maryland Heights, and the rest of the St. Louis area. Not only does cutting back on your home’s energy consumption save you money, but it can also be great for the environment. Although many factors contribute to the efficiency of your home, one of the most important is installing an energy-efficient furnace.
How to determine the efficiency of a furnace
The efficiency of a furnace is measured by its AFUE rating. This number describes what percentage of the fuel that a furnace consumes is turned into heat. The higher the percentage, the more efficient the furnace is.
By federal law, newly manufactured gas furnaces in the U.S. must have an AFUE rating of at least 78 percent. But this is just a bare minimum. To qualify as an Energy Star product (the “stamp of approval” for being an energy-efficient furnace), furnaces in our region of the country must have an AFUE rating of 90 percent or higher.
What are the benefits of installing an energy-efficient furnace?
Because high-efficiency furnaces can do more with less energy, their operating costs are lower than baseline models. Although these cost-savings might not seem huge in the short term (an average of $94 per year), this can add up over your unit’s 15-20 year lifespan. For many homeowners, this makes it a much easier decision to invest in a high-efficiency furnace even though they are more expensive upfront than standard units.
Energy-efficient furnaces are also great for the environment. How good? The EPA suggests that if every gas furnace sold in the U.S. met Energy Star requirements, annual greenhouse gas emissions would be reduced by the equivalent of those from 177,000 cars!
If you have any questions about an energy-efficient furnace, or if you’d like a heating system serviced or installed in your home, contact Jerry Kelly, your St. Louis heating repair company. We service the St. Louis area and surrounding cities like Clayton, Frontenac, and O’Fallon.
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