START WITH EFFICIENCY

Back in 1981, the U.S. Department of Energy decided to rate the relative efficiencies of air conditioners. And, being a government agency, it gave birth to an acronym ... one that today is part and parcel to the hvacr language.
Explain to customers that "SEER" stands for seasonal energy efficiency ratio, and it's a mathematical ratio of cooling output versus electrical power input over a wide range of operating conditions.

A good example is that it's similar to miles-per-gallon ratings for automobiles. The higher the SEER rating, the more energy efficient the air conditioner.
In 1992, the National Appliance Energy Conservation Act set a minimum standard of 10.0 SEER for split-system air conditioners.

This type of information offers important facts about what a customer is considering when making a decision to buy.

CULPRIT IS THE COIL

While most homeowners believe "central air" is the unit humming outside behind the arborvitae bush, a residential, split-system, central air conditioning system is actually a lot more.

It's not only the outdoor condenser, it's also the evaporator coil mounted indoors on a furnace or air handler.

The system is engineered as just that -- a system. And perhaps the most important part of that system is the coil, which must be properly matched to the condenser.
When ARI (the Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute) certifies SEER ratings, it bases its findings on systems that are operating as the manufacturer designed them.

That means, for example, that a high-efficiency outdoor unit is matched with a high-efficiency indoor coil. That way, the system is operating as it was engineered.

In actual residential installations, all too often a matched air conditioning system is not quoted because of pricing pressures. Homeowners are sometimes reluctant to pay the additional charges to replace not only an ailing outdoor condenser, but an existing indoor coil that seems to be operating just fine.
Is that opportunity knocking?

Of course, the problem of mismatched systems occurs more often in the residential replacement business than in new construction. But in 1996, the industry shipped more than 5.6 million new compressor-bearing units -and that market is 60% replacement -- illustrating the potential size of the problem.

York has capitalized on the situation with a new generation of coils that are simple for installing contractors to match up to condensers, a complete line of uncased, half-cased, fullcased, horizontal, and FlatTop(R) coils engineered to meet virtually any residential air conditioning installation.

The company is re-engineering its entire gas furnace and air handler lines to accept these new coils. The four standard widths of the furnaces and air handlers match up size-wise with the complete coil line.

To make certain everyone gets the "matching" message, the company has developed a dedicated "Residential System Selling Kit," which includes "Quick Selection Charts" and a reference manual detailing recommended system set-ups.

Also included in the kit is a proprietary computer software adaptation of the charts. Dubbed RSVP for "Residential System Verification Program," the interactive program is aimed at ensuring an efficient system. It allows installers to plug in system and application requirements to correctly match components.

With a correctly matched system, residential customers get ARI-certified, UL-approved performance; increased dependability; higher capacities; and more comfort.