We always want an 80 deg. day in order to check the performance of an a/c. That way there is a load on it.

Cindy,

Did you get a 4 inch media filter with your furnace? If you did then you should be able to go 9 - 12 months before a filter change. If is a one inch filter then you are over due.

How are you making out on gas usage with the new furnace? What were the claimed savings, and what are you actually getting thus far?

tinmantu, I thought it would be better to wait. Of course the person in the office who does the scheduling thought it would be fine to do it now. Said their equipment can check it at temps in the 60s. (I had hoped to get it today when it is at least 80 around here!). I will wait. Is there anything I should be sure to make sure they do? (and I will be sure they actually do and not settle for them telling me it's fine-though I'm sure it probably is fine)

Mike, the filter is a 4", it just looks gray. I don't know how to really tell when it is done. I thought it was to be changed every 6 months.

Gas use is down. This March bill was $156 and last year was $120, but this March was MUCH colder. March was the only month the bill was higher than last year. The degree days aren't in yet, but I remember last March and also the avg temp listed on the bill is about 8-10 degrees lower this year. The bills have been consistently lower even when the temps are a little colder this year. It will be interesting to see how the a/c bills are because that went from 8-10 SEER (1996 builder grade) to 16 SEER, plus the insulation etc.

Savings supposed to be 25%, I'd say it's been around 18% on the months where I have degree days to judge by. Feb bill this year was 188, 2012 was 185 but HDD days this year were 910 and 2012 HDD were 741. If I do the math correctly that is around 18.5%more HDD this year for the roughly the same bill (same usage). Not sure if the gas price changed. I have South Jersey gas and their website is almost useless. I didn't save the bills for winter 2012. I have been saving them ever since this project was conceived.

Hopefully in the rest of April and May I won't see savings because I won't need the hvac.

Did I calculate correctly? Do you agree I have savings?

If it's a company that isn't familiar with your system, they should access the coil to check for cleanliness and to verify what kind of coil it is for proper charging requirements. I always use a marker and write it on the outside of the cabinet. Check the condensate drain and make sure it's clear, clean filter before even putting gauges on it.

I have never calculated using heating degree days. I am not sure if this method is accurate.

You should go by the usage in cubic feet or therms and not dollars. This eliminates any changes in prices. With PSE&G I can pull up the bills for the last 12 months with my on line account. Does South Jersey gas have this feature?

I expect your gas savings to be closer to 10% than 25%. The savings for the AC could be close to 25%. The differences in weather make it hard to calculate the savings.

Mike, south jersey gas website is so lame that the "history" consists of dates and amounts billed, and dates and amounts paid. I have been ball parking it with heating degree days on the basis that if hdd's are down, so should my bill. I have saved bills since the summer, so I should be good to compare the electricity. For January my bill was lower than last year for similar temps.

Mike, the HDD for March were posted and it was 921 this year vs 454 last year. That is more than double! I know you say you don't know how to figure savings using HDD, but this March bill was $156 and last year was $120. I'm not sure what HDD has to do with usage etc, but I think with the HDD being so much higher and my bill only being $36 more that it must have to do with the work I had done. AND, my son was living here this year and not last year (college) so we used more hot water this year than last March and more gas dryer.

Do you agree?

I think those numbers are reflecting the energy improvements you have made. For my house the March 2012 gas bill was $95, and the March 2013 bill was $146. Last year we had a very mild winter, and this year felt colder than normal. The average degree days for March in our area is about 740.

Mike said, " For my house the March 2012 gas bill was $95, and the March 2013 bill was $146."

Mike, similar here in MD. My March 2012 Electric Bill was $140.03 and for March 2013 it was $188.19.

March of 2012 was so mild that for the first time in 20+ years here, I had to mow my lawn in March... and I did it THREE times. (I mowed it this Saturday for the first time this year.)

This post was edited by saltidawg on Mon, Apr 15, 13 at 11:08