When the New Mexico Summer days begin to reach the 100 degree mark, and are then followed by the annual New Mexico monsoon season rains, the humidity becomes unbearable, converting to refrigerated air conditioning over swamp cooler becomes a necessity! The one main nemesis of the evaporative (swamp) cooling is HUMIDITY! When the humidity rises above 60 percent, swamp coolers become useless for cooling!
So what is there to do when trying to remain comfortable all year long? Make the switch to Carrier High Efficiency refrigerated air conditioning!
The first objection people sometimes have is: “It will cost too much money!” We are here to clarify and dispel the myths and truly explain “What does it cost to convert to Refrigerated Air Conditioning?” The two main factors that can affect the cost to convert to A/C are the size of your home and the energy efficiency of the unit.
The square footage of your home will determine the size of unit needed to cool your home; these units are measured in tons (of air). For example, a 1,200 square foot home could use a 2-2.5 ton unit, while a 2,000 square foot home would typically need a 4 ton unit. Since the air handlers usually can’t cover more than about 2,500 square feet, homes larger than that require two units. Two story homes work best when there are two separate units to control the different level because of the rising heat between floors.
The cost for the various unit sizes may vary considerably, based on the SEER rating, the size of the unit as well as the brand of equipment. The SEER rating is an acronym for Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio and is best paralleled to Miles per Gallon on an automobile. The higher the SEER, the more efficient the unit will be on electricity consumption.
This graphic gives you an idea of the costs for an A/C conversion from evaporative cooling completed by Affordable Service Plumbing and Heating. When converting to refrigerated air conditioning, it is typical to need to replace the heating system as well as the blower motor in this unit will now become the source of air flow for the air conditioning as well. Therefore is make sense to handle this replacement now rather than later when it will cost much more because of the fact that replacing the unit with a A/C coil attached makes the project much more difficult than if it was replaced during the conversion. Also older units don’t have the capacity needed to handle A/C.
Here in the Southwest, a 14 SEER unit is the Federal Department of Energy minimum SEER allowed to be installed; upgrading that to a 16, 17 or higher SEER unit will add cost to the A/C equipment purchase, but will also save you money in energy cost during the unit’s lifetime. There are many incentives in the City of Albuquerque as well on the Federal level for tax incentives in purchasing high efficiency equipment.
Other factors that may influence the cost of A/C conversion are your current electrical capabilities in the home as well as the ductwork in your home. Some homes converting from swamp cooler to refrigerated air will need a panel upgrade to the electrical service to handle the A/C’s energy consumption needs.
The first step in converting a swamp cooler to refrigerated air is an in-depth home evaluation of all the above mentioned components to truly understand what it takes to correctly convert your home to refrigerated air conditioning in compliance with State of New Mexico Mechanical code requirements.
Call Affordable Service for a no cost, in depth home evaluation. We’ve been serving homeowners in Albuquerque, Rio Rancho, Corrales, Bernalillo and Placitas for over 30 years, and have built a reputation for quality and honesty. Don’t forget to ask your advisor about our summer finance special that will allow you to purchase an entire conversion with no money down and a 100% interest free financing for 18 months!
Call today and mention this ad and receive a $325.00 off coupon towards the purchase of you new A/C system*!!!! Call 505.255.COOL Today!
*Cannot be combined with other offers. Some conditions may apply. Please call for details on conversions.
