When speaking with an HVAC professional about your system, you may become confused when they use HVAC terms to describe your system. If you know and understand some of the basic terms that are used in the HVAC industry, you'll be on top of what all the professional terminology means.Here are some of the basic HVAC terms that you'll hear when a heating or air conditioning system is being described.
HVAC -- (H)eating, (V)entilation and (A)ir (C)onditioning comprises your entire HVAC heating and cooling system.
BTU -- Describes how much heating capacity your HVAC system has. The higher the BTU rating, the greater its heating ability.
Ton -- How much cooling capacity your central air conditioning has. Just like a BTU unit, the more tons your air conditioner has, the greater its cooling ability.
AFUE -- Stands for Annualized Fuel Utilization Efficiency, and refers directly to how efficient your furnace is. The higher the AFUE number, the more efficient the system.
SEER -- The Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio is how the efficiency of air conditioners is classified. The higher the SEER number, the more efficient the system.
MERV Rating -- MERV stands for Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value. It directly relates to how efficient your HVAC system filter is, and the higher the MERV rating, the more efficient it is at trapping dirt, dust, smoke and pollen particles.
Off-Grid -- Going "off-grid" means you have your own power source, like solar panels or a windmill, and are able to disconnect from your local utility service provider.
Energy Star -- A product designation from the Environmental Protection Agency that promises an Energy Star product meets or beats EPA energy efficient guidelines.
If you'd like to know more about HVAC terms and what they mean, contact Air Assurance. We'll answer your questions and provide outstanding service for all of your HVAC needs. Serving the Tulsa metropolitan area for more than 50 years.Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).
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