Energy Ratings Explained
Everyone is talking about SEER, LEED, ACEEE and Energy Star ratings. What are all these rating systems and what do they REALLY mean?
Many people know that SEER ratings are important in selecting heating and cooling equipment. What most people don't realize is that the HVAC contractor has a major role in making equipment perform up to its real capabilities in the home environment. Knowing the SEER FACTS can help!
Rating systems:
SEER: The efficiency of air conditioning units are often rated by the Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER). The higher the SEER rating of an air conditioning unit, the more energy efficient it is. The SEER rating is the Btu of cooling output during a typical cooling-season divided by the total electric energy input in watt-hours (W∑h) during the same period. SEER = BTU ˜ W∑h
LEED: The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System, developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), provides a suite of eco friendly standards for environmentally sustainable construction. Since its inception in 1998, LEED has grown to encompass over 14,000 projects in 50 US States and 30 countries covering 1.062 billion square feet (99 km≤) of development area. The hallmark of LEED is that it is an open and transparent process where the technical criteria proposed by the LEED committees are publicly reviewed for approval by the more than 10,000 membership organizations that currently constitute the USGBC.
The LEED™ Rating System - LEED™ Certification is based on a point system. The amount of eco friendly points achieved will determine which level of eco friendly LEED™ Certification the project is awarded. There are 69 possible eco friendly points and four certification levels. Basic LEED™ Certification requires 26 to 32 points; LEED™ Certified Silver Level requires 33 to 38 points; LEED™ Certified Gold Level requires 39 to 51 points; and LEED™ Certified Platinum Level requires 52 to 69 points.
USGBC organizes the available eco friendly points for LEED™ Certification into five broad categories. Below is a list of the categories and examples of required and possible points for each of the categories. USGBC also provides an optional sixth category for innovation and design process.
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Ecotech Refrigeration & HVAC, Inc. of Las Vegas
phone 702.353.2777 fax 702.452.0777
email ecotechcorp(at)msn.com