Homeowners, which of these consumes more energy in your house: space heating or water heating? Either way, Uncle Sam is ready to help you pay for some energy-efficient upgrades.
The Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law by President Biden a year ago, created two energy-efficiency rebate programs that could pay some, or even all, of the costs of buying Energy Star-rated appliances, adding insulation or otherwise making your home more efficient.
The rub: States will administer the programs, and each one must apply for its share of the $8.8 billion in federal funds earmarked for the rebates. And some states may opt out.
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One state has already indicated it probably won’t participate. Lawmakers in Tallahassee voted to apply for Florida’s allocation — which, at roughly $346 million, is the third-largest in the country, behind California and Texas. But Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed the measure as “woke.” The DoE has not been officially notified, so DeSantis could still change his mind.
Can Air conditioners really get more efficient than window units or central? There are heat pumps which are better, but other than that the majority of better efficiency comes from better wall and window insulation to keep the cold in.
My understanding is mini-splits are pretty efficient, specifically because of the small hole poked in the wall.
In addition, technology improves. A newer AC is more efficient than an older one.
I imagine heat pumps are fantastic down there as well, since most (all?) of Florida occasionally needs heat, but it never gets cold enough to keep heat pumps from working at their best
I’m from North Carolina, and heat pumps are plenty sufficient here. I grew up in a house with a heat pump, we stayed plenty warm. I’m SURE you don’t need a furnace in Florida.
EEV > TXV > Capillary tube, the evolution of expansion valves and pressure control in refrigeration units has been significant. The lower compression ratio you can run, the higher the COP.
Cap tubes are what you find in basic and old window shakers, completely passive and only work well at one power point, TXVs control superheat which is a big improvement and are common in “ordinary” central units, EEVs allow full control of high and low side pressure and compression ratio and are seen in modern inverter drive/heat pump/mini split systems.
Inverter drive compressors are a huge improvement too.
I am betting there are a lot of ancient ACs in Florida that could use an upgrade too.