When the temperatures reach 105 degrees, most folks reach for their air conditioner. Air conditioning doesn’t cost much to the homeowner but the cost to the utility company is high. When temperatures peak so does the electricity demand. This means that utility companies have to run part-time high-polluting power plants called peaker plants to meet the demand.
According to a recent Quest radio broadcast, air conditioners are almost twice as efficient today as they were in 1970. On the other hand houses are bigger, population is growing and the climate is hotter. According to John Proctor, AC innovator and entrepreneur, the United States has a one size fits all air conditioner so does an imperfect job in all areas. For example, folks in Florida need an air conditioner to remove humidity while Californians do not need dehumidification. If all Californians switched to climate specific AC, entire power plants could be retired. Proctor Engineering has created a motor called the Concept 3 that will retrofit your central AC system to work in a dry Southwest climate, making it 20 percent more efficient.
According to John Proctor in the article’s comment section:
“Technically the Concept 3 Motor saves air conditioning energy in three ways. 1) The motor itself is a premium efficiency permanent magnet DC motor (yes it runs on AC). It is controlled to produce the same airflow as your existing standard furnace/air handler motor, but it does it at a much lower watt draw. 2) Since the motor is drawing less watts it is also rejecting less heat into the air circulated to your house. 3) The controls are integrated into the motor and those controls cause the fan to run at a low speed after the outdoor compressor shuts off. This evaporates water off the coil, decreasing dehumidification and increasing the cooling delivered to your house.
The motor simply replaces the existing fan motor in your furnace.”
The United States needs to make three different types of AC; one for the humid South, one for the hot, dry West and one for the temperate Midwest. Now, if the U.S. Dept. of Energy can just convince manufacturers.
Gosh, he makes it sound easy.
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Welcome to Verda Vivo. My name is Daryl Warner Laux.
Nice article as usual Daryl !
It is sure : if we have efficient appliances tailored to our exact needs it will be better for everybody : companies, people, the environment…
I am glad to be in France when I read that temperatures can reach in the US above 40°C… the highest we have is around 30°C in the north-east part of France…
Keep it up !
Thanks, Edouard, I was very surprised to hear about how much energy could be saved by switching to an air conditioner specifically designed for the climate. France does seem to have milder weather. It gets pretty hot when you live in a desert climate! ~ Daryl
Hey that’s great news for everyone, you can even try a Portable Air Conditioning unit which gives you an easy cooling and you can also drag from one room to another.