What Is A SEER?

SEER is a standard of measurement of seasonal cooling efficiency under an average number of weather changes over a season.

SEER stands for "Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio."

Now that we know what SEER stands for, who came up with it, and who is in charge of it? The institution that helped come up with the formula to achieve a standard form of measurement is the AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEATING, REFRIGERATION, AND AIR CONDITIONING ENGINEERS, INC. (ASHRAE). They are responsible for establishing standards for testing and rating products. Once the standard of measurement was designed, the agency who sponsors and administers certification programs to help ensure that industry products perform as rated is THE AIR CONDITIONING & REFRIGERATION INSTITUTE (ARI).

ARI is a voluntary, nonprofit organization comprised of the manufactures of air conditioning, refrigeration, and heating products.

One of ARI's functions is to publish the DIRECTORY OF CERTIFIED AIR CONDITIONERS, AIR SOURCE UNITARY HEAT PUMPS, AND SOUND-RATED OUTDOOR UNITARY EQUIPMENT which lists all eligible models of these types of equipment each manufacturer participating in the applicable certification program.

So where your old unit most likely had just an EER rating, today’s units have a rating which is in essence the average of its EER over a standardized season.

The higher the SEER number, the more energy efficient the unit.