FL Green Team Helps Homeowners Address Hottest Year on Record and Prep for Year Ahead

Florida recorded the hottest year on record according to data released by the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI).

With 2018 ahead and record breaking temperatures in 2017, many homeowners are facing more expenses, high electric bills, uncomfortable temperatures, and high indoor humidity.

FL Green Team is dedicated to helping its customers and the community employ energy saving tactics, and providing guidance about how small changes can make a big impact on energy consumption. Higher temperatures don’t have to mean being uncomfortable or increased energy bills. FL Green Team provides diagnostic tools and expertise to determine the best solutions for home comfort and energy efficiency.

“We are an energy conservation company focused on making homes and businesses more energy efficient, comfortable and healthy, thereby lowering energy consumption and reducing utility bills,” said Reed Wilson, FL Green Team CEO and State Certified Energy Rater. “We are vested in helping Southwest Florida homeowners benefit throughout the year by putting strategies in place to save energy and money.”

When temperatures rise, many homeowners think that their air conditioning units are no longer blowing cold enough. But the reality is, the job of an air conditioning system is to remove unwanted heat and humidity. When you remove the heat from the air (conditioning the air) what comes out of the ceiling ducts is colder air than what went in through the return ductwork (usually about 20+ degrees cooler). But when temperatures are extreme, maintaining temperatures inside homes and buildings can get challenging.

According to ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers), standard design conditions for residential air conditioners in Southwest Florida are based on 93 degrees Fahrenheit for outside ambient temperatures to maintain 75 degrees Fahrenheit inside the home. The ACCA (Air Conditioning Contractors of America) bases its Manual J load calculations on the ASHRAE design temperatures and conditions. Under these conditions standards during the summer months southwest Florida will exceed 93 degrees Fahrenheit 1% of the hours based on a 30-year average.

Often homes become uncomfortably warm in the late afternoon when temperatures are the highest and bright sun shines through windows on the west side of the home. The simple solution would be to increase the size of the air conditioning system. Unfortunately, increasing the A/C unit can create a problem with high humidity. If an air conditioner is oversized it will cool quickly but fail to perform its equally important function of humidity control resulting in a cold clammy feeling, and can result in mold and mildew issues.

Along with outside air temperatures, FL Green Team finds there are other major factors that many homeowners overlook that can cause a home to be inefficient and uncomfortably warm/stuffy.

First is leaky ductwork. If it is 93F outside, the attic, where most ductwork is located is over 130F. If 130F air is being sucked into the ductwork, not only will the temperature be excessively warm, the humidity will also be elevated making it even more uncomfortable.

Secondly, many homes only have one air return line in a main part of a home so when a door is closed, to the master bedroom, for example, the cool air supply is reduced as the warm air has no place to go. Sealing the ductwork and adding additional return air supplies can solve these types of problems.

Recent advances in air conditioning technology can also save on energy consumption and bills. Today’s variable speed compressors and air handlers run at the lowest possible speed while maintaining a more constant temperature and humidity level. Not only will a home be more comfortable, it will be healthier as the air inside the home is constantly being filtered. This also saves money.

For example, a 5-ton air conditioner will handle the heat load during the warmest part of the day during the hottest days of the year. A variable speed system can run at approximately 20% capacity consuming 80% less energy much of the year.

“At FL Green Team, informing consumers about simple ways to address the extreme temperatures and improve energy efficiency is in our DNA––it’s a personal and professional passion of ours,” explains Wilson.

Wilson has dedicated his career to energy conservation for more than 30-years.

About FL GREEN TEAM

FL Green Team is an energy conservation company dedicated to making homes and businesses more energy efficient, comfortable and healthy lowering energy consumption and reducing electric bills. In many cases FL Green Team can cut electric bills 50% through energy efficiency measures such as upgrading air conditioning systems including ductwork sealing, solar electric and water heating, insulation and window tinting. While helping homeowners and businesses become more energy efficient FL Green Team improves air quality, making the environment more healthy and comfortable.

Founded in 2001, Wilson started Comfort Temp Air Conditioning which today does business as the FL Green Team, incorporating the company’s green approach to home comfort systems. Visit flgreenteam.com.