Enter the total heat removed from the air and the total energy consumed to determine the seasonal energy efficiency ratio (SEER).
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SEER Formula
The following formula is used to calculate a seasonal energy efficiency ratio.
SEER = HR/EC
- Where SEER is the seasonal energy efficiency ratio (BTUs/Wh)
- HR is the total amount of heat removed from the air (BTUs)
- EC is the total amount of energy consumed to remove the heat (Wh)
To calculate the SEER ration, divide the total amount of heat removed from the air by the total energy consumed by the system.
The typical units used are BTUs (British Thermal Units) and Wh (watt-hours) but any unit of energy and power could be substituted respectively.
SEER Definition
What is SEER?
SEER, short for seasonal energy efficiency ratio, is a measure used to describe the efficiency of a cooling system, most commonly an air-conditioner.
SEER is a ratio of the energy removed from the air to the power consumed by the system. It is similar to a coefficient of performance (COP), but that coefficient is unit less as it compares input power to output power.
Example Problem
How to calculate seasons energy efficiency ratio (SEER)?
- First, determine the total energy (heat) removed from the air during a specific time period (Typically a season).
For this example, to make things simple the time period is just a day and the total heat removed was 500 BTUs.
- Next, determine the total energy required to run the air conditioning.
In this case, it took 400 watt-hours of energy to run the system.
- Finally, calculate the seasonal energy efficiency ratio.
Using the formula above, the SEER is calculated to be:
SEER = HR/EC
SEER = 500/400
SEER = 1.25 BTU’s/Wh
