Forget about tourists and sunburns, one of the most stressful aspects of living in Florida is dealing with the extreme heat and humidity. When the air conditioning goes out, it is never fun to deal with. What makes the event particularly stressful is the amount of uncertainty that revolves around it. It is difficult for a homeowner to evaluate the situation. They typically understand, however, that this repair could end up costing hundreds if not thousands of dollars. Once they get beyond the initial shock the system they depend on day in and day out to keep them comfortable has failed, they begin to ask wonder how long they will be in this situation. Often times in the summer it can be difficult to find a reputable contractor in a reasonable amount of time and parts could be on backorder from the distributor for weeks. Many people will wonder why the systems can't just last forever and what does actually cause them to fail.

The main reason an air conditioner will fail is due to lack of maintenance. Not only will the routine maintenance ensure that parts are moving freely and the system is clean, but a technician will also be able to identify if some parts have corroded or worn down and should be replaced prior to failure. Simple tasks like regularly replacing the filters will extend life to the system. A clogged filter will require the system to work that much more to pull air through the return.

Another reason air conditioners frequently break down in Orlando is because they get a lot of use. Not only is the temperature hot, but humidity is high. The typical Orlando homeowner will cool their house nearly 2800 hours every year. That is over 116 full days worth of operation in a year. Another way of looking at it is your air conditioner is in use 1/3 of the time. There are very few other products we operate so strenuously. Imagine if we drove a car for 8 hours a day or used a tool like a lawnmower to that extent. An HVAC system has many moving parts. They can become dirty, worn and can fail. Parts may also tend to fail more prematurely in Orlando than other parts of the country because of the high humidity. Algae and mold can grow on coils and duct systems and condensing units are exposed to the elements. Not only will the moisture cause expedited corrosion of parts but we also face some sea-salt corrosion as well.

The best way to protect yourself against surprise HVAC failures is to have a routine maintenance done semi-annually by a licensed air conditioning contractor such as Melco HVAC Services of Orlando. This will ensure that your system is operating at peak performance and parts that may be cause for concern can be replaced prior to failure.

On occasion we are asked, "how much does it cost to run our air conditioner?" When you live in Orlando, it is no surprise that it costs a lot to keep coil. Orlando has an average of 2800 cooling hours a year which is well above the national average. People here are also more likely to use their air conditioners year round because of the high humidity. An easy answer to give is that it cooling costs are roughly half of your energy bill but it also isn't quite that easy. The costs to operate a heating and cooling system have many factors that go well beyond the actual specifications. Identical systems can perform much differently at various locations. There are so many other variable that go into a HVAC system's performance than just the equipment.

One of the most obvious reasons for the differences in efficiency is the air distribution systems. According to the DOE, leaking ducts are a top energy waster. Ducts can leak over time near connectors and register boxes but they can also become damaged and leak in the middle of a run as well. The state of Florida has also recently required duct sealing to accompany all equipment replacements per code. The installing contractor must certify that ducts are sealed.

Another reason why one system may perform better over another is that it is properly sized. Contractors should use a proper manual S sizing methods when replacing a system. This calculation factors everything from window sizing, insulation, ceiling height and even tree shade to determine what size system is the most efficient for a home. When a system is not properly sized, it may either short cycle or run forever. In either situation, it will be difficult to become comfortable as the humidity will be substantial with an oversized system and it will simply be too hot if your air conditioner is too small. Oversized air conditioners are a common problem in Florida and is estimated that more than 50% of the equipment today is too big for the application.

Other factors that could impact how well a system heats or cools is the length of the copper linesets, whether or not ductwork is properly sized, if the system has been maintained i.e. clean coils, clean filters and whether or not the system is properly charged.

The most commonly discussed rating for air conditioner performance is SEER. This provides a snapshot of how efficient an air conditioner is under a strict set of conditions. A SEER rating does not guarantee that your system will perform to that level. It could be better or worse. The higher the SEER, the more energy efficient the system is, except when comparing single and two stage compressor systems. Two stage compressors are tested in high stage although they will operate in low stage the majority of time in Orlando. This means that the compressor will run at 70% capacity and consume roughly 2/3 the energy. If you have more questions about efficiency ratings, contact the AC experts at Melco HVAC Services of Orlando. We offer free estimates on new system installations and guarantee that we will find the right efficiency system for your budget.

Although brand selection is not the most important choice when replacing your home's central air conditioning or heat pump system, but it shouldn't be ignored either. The most important selection is the contractor that will be doing the installation. How well the equipment performs depends almost exclusively on the quality of their installation. The warranty, efficiency ratings, performance and other benefits offered by the manufacturer will only be as good as the installation. While the isn't the most important decision, it is good to be informed. Many people don't realize that not all brands are readily available in all parts of the country. The agreements between the distributors and manufacturers can change often and some brands can literally vanish from a marketplace overnight. Unless you are purchasing a brand that has a solid contractor/dealer base, you could be at risk of not having warranty parts available or even finding someone to work on your system. This is another reason one should not blindly purchase HVAC equipment from an online retailer, you could be purchasing from a manufacturer that has limited or no local distribution. While there are dozens of brands available in Orlando, there is "the big 5" for the area and state of Florida.

Carrier is the first of the big 5 brands for the Greater Orlando area. United Technologies is the parent corporation and owns the brands Bryant and Payne. All of these systems are distributed through the local Totaline. The combination of the three brands represents the highest market share for any manufacturer in the area and has many long-time dedicated dealers.

Goodman is another popular brand choice for Orlando and the rest of the nation. Goodman has the highest market share of any single brand in the United States at nearly 26%. The parent company of Goodman, Daikin, owns their own distribution centers and has more in the state of Florida than any of their competitors and local centers in Orlando, Sanford and Kissimmee. Amana and Daikin brand equipment are also manufactured by Daikin and distributed through Goodman and Johnstone Supply locations.

Trane is another popular brand that has a large and dedicated contractor and homeowner customer base. They have a high market share with satisfied customers. They typically request the same equipment they had little troubles with. 

Lennox and Rheem finish out the top 5 brands with the highest market share in Tampa. By selecting any of these brands, you can feel confident the manufacturer and distributor will be around throughout the life of that system. We estimate "the big 5" represent more than 90% of the HVAC systems installed in Orlando. Some less popular brands that have significant presence are York and Nordyne products which include Maytag, Frigidaire, Comfortmaker and more. 

If you still have questions regarding which air conditioning and heating products are the best for Orlando, call the local AC experts at Melco HVAC Services of Orlando. We will be happy to answer any questions you may have and assist in determining the optimum system for your home.

According to the 2010 US Census, there are over 2 million people in the Greater Orlando area. When we say Greater Orlando area, we are including surrounding towns such as Kissimmee and Sanford. That amount of people puts Orlando in the top 30 largest metropolitan areas in the United States. It also gets extremely hot and humid in Florida which means there is a lot of air conditioning. Because of the combination of population and heat, Orlando is one of the largest air conditioning markets in the United States and easily in the top ten finishing behind Los Angeles, Phoenix, Houston, Dallas, Miami, Tampa and San Antonio.  Many people must be wondering just how many dollars all that would be when you consider all the air conditioning repairs and new central HVAC installations  that happen on an annual basis in Orlando. We were curious as well and were determined to figure that out.

To better understand the sales, we need to identify the various channels in the HVAC distribution process. The manufacturer sells the equipment to a wholesaler distributor who in turns sells to a local contractor who will then sell the equipment to the end user or homeowner. We will be focusing on both the sales from the distributor to local contractor and then to the end user.

Once we could determine what the wholesale volume was, we could make some accurate guesses as to the retail sales. We decided to check with one of our local distributors for guidance. He reported that their greater Orlando locations had sales of roughly $30 million last year. He was also able to provide some additional insight that they have roughly 25% market share. With that information we were able to determine that the wholesale revenue for HVAC in Orlando is roughly $120 million annually.

To determine retail sales, we simply use averages for air conditioning contractors in the United States. While the percentage of cost of materials to revenue is higher and lower for some companies depending on a number of factors whether they are new construction, replacement or a combination, an average is 30%. In other words, the $120 million in wholesale purchases would be roughly 30% of the retail market. That would yield a total of $400 million in retail sales and a combined (wholesale and retail) $520 million market.

We hope you've found this entry regarding the Orlando air conditioning market insightful. If you are interested in saving money and making sure you contribute as little to the nearly half a billion dollar market as possible, contact the HVAC experts at Melco HVAC Services of Orlando today.