LED lights for the home....

[robalv]

I noticed you mentioned your A\C just a heads up, For every SEER point you are looking at about 7% saving on your cooling costs. Dont get too hung up on name brands like Trane , Carrier , Lennox as in all things you are paying for the name. Carrier makes, Bryant, Payne, ICP.. Trane is also American Standard and I believe they may have purchased GE not too sure on that on any way you can get a good system without the name. With CPS credits , Manufacturer rebates and Tax credits it can help with some of the costs but you must go through a dealer for those. When I replace my Heat pump 3 yrs ago with a 16 seer 2 speed with a variable speed indoor fan coil I received a 3200.00 tax credit now its only 800.00 I think. I was able to run my system @ 72.0 degrees all summer long @ 180 a month so not too bad. Good Luck OH yea may want to check on Ridge Vents on your roof and Spray on Radiant Barrier I think thats what its called and Attic Solar powered fans.

[chunkymonkey]

been looking at the Radiant Barrier. I spend a lot of time listening to KTSA while on patrol, lol. Heard of the ridge vents, but keep forgetting to google them, lol. As for the solar stuff I mentioned earlier, I'm not a tree hugger go-nuts kind of person, but lookin' to save a buck. I also know that it'll cost money to get there. Our house is about 30yrs old. Been in it for 1 year. CPS said we can go the pro rated amount now that we've been here a year which comes to 200 a month. Should we have a balance due at the end, then we owe. But, obviously if it ends up over paying, they'll of course give us a credit.

On the radiant barrier, I've heard mixed reviews. Some people say you're not supposed to spray the inside of your roof. Others say to go with the roll on sticky aluminum stuff. Anymore input on that?

My roof is supposed composed of 25 year shingles, they're about 6yrs old. Now I know I'll probably have to replace before the 25 year mark due to texas heat and conditions.

[chunkymonkey]

I also need to go through all the duct work to make sure it's as efficient as possible.

[robalv]

Radiant Barrier I work in them hot attics all summer long the Spray works and seems to be affordable but the coolest attic I ever worked in was foamed with vents from eve to ridge vent bu what do I know I just do AC lol... Now Duct work, If it is 30 years old you should replace it when you replace your system and most people dont due to costs. If you think about it you are putting a new system and need new duct work designed for that system to work as efficiently as it should. With the new Variable speed indoor blowers you get better humidity control you can even drop down a 1/2 ton in some cases saving around 500 bucks or so .

[chunkymonkey]

lol, based on your prior post, I figured you had a hand in the a/c world, lol. I've been thinking of the barrier spray, just googled the solar fans too. My house has the ridge vents, but reading a bunch of stuff, I better check just to ensure they're not blocked. I believe my a/c system is a newer model, really need to look at it as I really hadn't. As for the vents, that was just another thought in my mind on the list of making sure I'm getting all the a/c I'm paying for. You do independent work or with a bigger company. I may hit you up off thread for a consultation/evaluation on my system if y'all offer that. My a/c seems to have good flow and blows cold. If I may need to look into a replacement, It'll take some saving as I have some other things going too. I am aware of how costly an inappropriate a/c can be. I have a home owner warranty policy, but would be my luck that they'd replace every nut and bolt on the system or have some crud company doing the work. Appreciate your info. I too am not stuck on name brands, rather performance.

[alton]

I would be interested in how the LEDS are holding up? Our service department would sell them and then get call backs every time one of the LEDS would go out. I don't think we push them as hard anymore?

[350gt]

I bought some of the led flood lamps from SAMs and they went out pretty fast for me... Hopefully Philips has a better product than what's offered over there..

[chunkymonkey]

yeah we'll see. If these die after in a year then they I'll stay away.

[tony]

ive always been curious about solar attic fans myself.

[chunkymonkey]

doing a lot of reading, I've been seeing mixed reviews. Maybe I'll start with the radiant barrier first. What would be an "acceptable" temp for an attic in the middle of summer? I have numerous roof like vents on my home, but obviously it'll still get warm in the summer. Not sure about the amount of air flow I have.