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Q: I've had my 12,000 Btu window air conditioner for six years. I don't see an ENERGY STAR® label on it. I want to save electricity but the unit works fine, so I want to be sure it's worth it to replace it with an ENERGY STAR model. Can you advise me? (Posted July 25, 2008)
A: Glad to. I'd wait until the old air conditioner fails. Here's why: The decision has to do with whether or not the energy savings from a new unit would pay for your purchase in a reasonable time. Savings depend on the age of the air conditioner, its size, and how much you use it. If your current unit had been manufactured before October of 2000, I'd be likely to recommend replacement, because a new ENERGY STAR qualified air conditioner is 25% more efficient than those older models.
But yours is newer. Today's ENERGY STAR qualified models are 10% more efficient than air conditioners made since 2000. So, your savings wouldn't be large enough to justify replacement of a functioning unit.
Another factor that makes waiting a good idea is the simple fact that we're in Vermont. Few days in a typical Vermont summer are hot enough for air conditioning, so I'm going to estimate that your air conditioner is on for only 100 hours per month for three months. Compared to most places in the U.S., that's a very short season of use for an air conditioner! Based on that usage, your annual air conditioning electricity bill, for your size unit, would be about $48. That's about $5 more than a comparable ENERGY STAR qualified unit would cost to operate.
So, unless you use your air conditioner a great deal more than I've assumed, you can see why it's logical, financially, to wait to buy a new unit. Once your old air conditioner fails, it definitely will be worthwhile to buy an ENERGY STAR qualified model.
Rachael is a business development specialist at Efficiency Vermont. To find more energy saving tips or to submit a new question about energy use in your home or business, visit www.efficiencyvermont.com/askrachael or call, toll-free: 888-921-5990 to speak with a customer service representative.
