Air conditioner level 1 energy efficiency saves a lot of electricity than level 3
When choosing an air conditioner, how the power saving effect is one of our most concerned issues, and judging whether an air conditioner is energy-saving is often through the energy efficiency label pasted on the machine, often referred to as energy efficiency level 1, energy efficiency level 2, and level 3. Energy efficiency refers to it.
The full name of the air-conditioning energy efficiency standard is "Energy Efficiency Limits and Energy Efficiency Ratings of Room Air Conditioners". The first edition was proposed in 1989. It has been revised 6 times so far, and this year has undergone the 7th revision, hereinafter referred to as the "New National Standard." The "new national standard" will be officially implemented on July 1, 2020, and is known by the industry as the most stringent energy efficiency standard so far.
So what is so special about the most stringent "new national standard" in the industry, and what impact it has on our purchase of air conditioners, I will explain it in detail today.
The power consumption gap of different energy-efficient air conditioners is not big
Regarding the energy efficiency label, I believe most people only know that it indicates the degree of energy saving. The first level represents very energy saving, the second level represents more power saving, and the third level represents less power saving. This understanding cannot be said to be wrong, but it seems rather one-sided.
In the old version of "Energy Efficiency Limits and Energy Efficiency Ratings of Room Air Conditioners", fixed frequency air conditioners use EER energy efficiency ratings, and inverter air conditioners use APF energy efficiency ratings, which are essentially the same. The standard for dividing the energy efficiency grades of air conditioners is the energy efficiency ratio, which is divided into three grades of 1, 2, and 3. The energy efficiency ratio is equal to the ratio of "cooling (heat) quantity to input power".
Regardless of whether a room is cooling or heating, it is essentially the transfer or transportation of heat. The cooling capacity and heating capacity represent the amount of heat to be transferred. If an air conditioner can transport more heat with a lower output power, its energy efficiency ratio will naturally be higher, which means it can save energy and electricity.
But in fact, the difference in power consumption of air conditioners with different energy efficiency levels is not as big as expected. According to the EER energy efficiency rating standards, the energy consumption ratios corresponding to the energy efficiency levels 1, 2, and 3 mentioned above are respectively 34, 3.2, and 3.0.
Assuming that a fixed-frequency air conditioner has a cooling capacity of 3500W, the cooling power under three energy efficiency levels can be calculated:
Level 1 energy efficiency: 3500W÷3.4=1029W
Level 2 energy efficiency: 3500W÷3.2=1093W
Level 3 energy efficiency: 3500W÷3.0=1167W
Hourly cooling power consumption:
Level 1 energy efficiency: 1.029kWh
Level 2 energy efficiency: 1.093kWh
Level 3 energy efficiency: 1.167kWh
It can be seen that the difference in power consumption per hour between level 1 energy efficiency and level 3 energy efficiency is only 0.138 degrees, and the difference in power consumption for 8 hours a day is 1.104 degrees. If the electricity cost per kilowatt is 0.6 yuan, the level 1 energy efficiency fixed frequency air conditioner per day It only saves about 0.66 yuan compared to Level 3 energy efficiency, which is far from imagination.
Of course, when it comes to energy saving and power saving, we have to mention the difference between fixed frequency air conditioners and inverter air conditioners. In conventional cognition, inverter air conditioners save electricity compared to fixed-frequency air conditioners of the same grade. Manufacturers also advertised that, and some even slogans "only one kilowatt-hour per night", making consumers think that inverter air conditioners can save a lot of electricity.
Some organizations have done relevant analysis on the Internet. Inverter air conditioners cost more electricity than fixed frequency air conditioners in the first 4 hours because they can "overclock" and blow out colder air. After 4 hours, the inverter air conditioner can really save electricity compared with the fixed frequency air conditioner by lowering the frequency. In other words, inverter air conditioners need to be turned on for a long time to achieve better energy-saving effects, especially for offices, schools, and office buildings. And if you are someone who turns off the air conditioner in the middle of the night, then the fixed frequency air conditioner is obviously cheaper.
What is special about the new national standard? Can I still buy the old national standard air conditioner?
Having said so much, let’s talk about the changes in this most stringent "new national standard" in history. Compared with the old national standard, an important change of the new national standard is to merge the original fixed frequency air conditioner and inverter air conditioner standards into one in the market, no longer distinguish between fixed frequency and variable frequency, and only grade according to seasonal energy efficiency, that is, the front The said EER and APF are unified and merged into APF.
The "new national standard" has a total of 5 levels of standards, of which the level 1 energy efficiency standard is newly formulated, reaching the international leading level; the level 2 and level 3 standards correspond to the old version of the frequency conversion level 1 and 2, respectively, and the level 4 corresponds to some frequency conversions currently on the market. Level 1 and fixed frequency level 1; Level 5 corresponds to some fixed frequency level 2 products currently on the market, and is also the entry level of the new standard. The previous fixed frequency level 3 has been eliminated.
Relevant people said that the new national standard air conditioner will be more energy-saving and energy-saving. The inverter level 1 energy-efficient air conditioner in the old standard can produce 4500 watts of cooling (heating) effect by using 1000 watts of electricity; while the new national standard level 1 energy-efficient air conditioner, Using 1000 watts of electricity can produce 5000 watts of cooling (heating) effect.
Turn on the new standard air conditioner and the old standard air conditioner at the same time. When they are turned on every day, the new national standard air conditioner can save 272 kilowatt-hours of electricity per year compared to the old standard air conditioner. At the price of 60 yuan per kilowatt-hour, it can save 163.2 yuan per year. On the surface, the energy consumption saved is not too much, but looking at the whole country, the saving is huge energy consumption.
In addition, the new version of the national standard has eliminated some high energy consumption air conditioners. Can we still buy these old standard air conditioners after July 1st? The answer is yes. Although the new version of the national standard will be implemented soon, it is currently only stipulated that manufacturers are not allowed to produce air conditioners that do not meet the new version of the national standard, and the inventory can still continue to be sold until June next year.
Power saving is only a small part of the energy efficiency standard
Although the energy efficiency standards are almost centered on saving electricity, from our previous calculations, for individual households, the difference in electricity charges for different levels of air conditioners is not large. Therefore, if you simply pursue saving money, it is obviously more appropriate to buy low-grade air conditioners. Not only will it not consume too much electricity, but you can save hundreds or even thousands on the purchase of air conditioners.
However, considering the environmental protection and energy saving and emission reduction factors, level 1 energy-efficient air conditioners are of great significance. If energy-saving air conditioners can be used by billions of households around the world, it will inevitably greatly reduce the burden on the earth. Of course, it depends on the individual's consciousness.
To be practical, even if you don’t care about protecting the environment, a level 1 inverter air conditioner is still more worth buying than a level 5 fixed frequency air conditioner. To put it simply and crudely, the energy saving of air conditioners is realized by stacking materials. The more energy-efficient air conditioners are more expensive, but their technology, materials, and workmanship are better. In other words, they may last longer and save worry. .
On the other hand, the comfort of the inverter air conditioner is far better than that of the fixed frequency air conditioner, because its temperature control is more stable and accurate, and it will not start and stop as frequently as the fixed frequency air conditioner, resulting in repeated temperature fluctuations.
Therefore, if you are not short of money, I definitely recommend buying a class 1 energy efficiency inverter air conditioner. But after all, everyone’s usage habits and consumption power are different, so if you don’t use the air conditioner much time per day and care about the cost performance, then the affordable 4-level or even 5-level fixed-frequency air conditioner is also worth choosing, and it will not cost much more than the 1-level inverter. , It just lacks some sense of comfort and environmental protection.
