Your home’s cooling equipment is critical for comfort in Florida’s hot, sticky climate. If it’s not functioning well, you may be worried whether it’s going to survive another cooling season. So how do you determine its probable life span? Factors that influence A/C life span include the quality of the equipment, whether it was installed properly, the total hours of use it sees, and how well it’s maintained. You can use the following criteria to decide if it’s time to start considering replacement:
Age of the A/C
An average air conditioner life span is 15 years, but the amount of use it sees can shorten that time frame considerably. Typically, an air conditioner loses five percent in efficiency and cooling capacity for every year of service life. When an A/C is over 10 years old, breakdowns and repairs become more frequent, and it’s more vulnerable to sudden failure. You can save repair costs and inconvenience by replacing an older A/C before these issues escalate.
Rising energy bills
If your cooling habits haven’t changed, but your energy consumption and costs are increasing, it can be a sign that your older A/C is approaching the end of its useful service life. If your A/C was built prior to 2006, its low seasonal energy efficiency ratio (SEER) may be adding to your high energy costs. It’s likely that it’s a 10 SEER, which is significantly less efficient than today’s units which range from 13 to 24 SEER. You could save 60 percent on energy by installing a 16 SEER model. If you opt for Energy Star-certified equipment, those savings jump by another 15 percent.
High humidity
If your home is uncomfortably humid and you’re noticing musty odors and an increase in mold and mildew growth, it may be time to retire your older air conditioner. Aging, inefficient equipment that’s not circulating air well can’t remove moisture effectively, which leads to excess humidity problems.
If you’re trying to determine the A/C life span in your Tampa, Clearwater or St. Petersburg area home and need expert advice, please contact us today at Senica Air Conditioning, Inc., Inc.
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