Case Study: A restaurant's reduction in heating and cooling costs (September 2006)
Background
Spent $1,375 per month on its electric bill.
Averaged $460 per month, December through March, for heating using a direct-fired natural gas furnace. The gas bill was lower in warmer months.
Used old, non-programmable thermostats with inaccurate calibration, which made it difficult to maintain a comfortable temperature for patrons.
Goals
Achieve a more consistent temperature range through heating and cooling seasons to ensure the comfort of its patrons.
Reduce energy consumption and costs by operating their heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems more efficiently.
Solution
An HVAC contractor evaluated their heating and cooling systems and provided recommendations for controlling the temperature in the facility.
The HVAC contractor replaced the existing thermostats with programmable units that maintain proper heating and cooling levels during business hours and automatically adjust the temperature when the restaurant is closed.
The restaurant enjoyed annual reductions of 20 percent in natural gas consumption related to heating and 10 percent in electrical consumption related to heating and cooling.
Bottom line
The cost to install the programmable thermostats was $400.
The business owner programmed the thermostat for summer and winter schedules.
The temperatures throughout the facility remained more consistent, customer satisfaction increased and after-hours energy consumption was significantly reduced.
This resulted in a savings of $368 per year on natural gas heating costs and $1,650 per year on electricity costs – for a combined savings of $2,018 per year. Payback on this modest investment was realized in just 2.4 months.
To find out if you can attain similar results for your office, warehouse or retail space, contact a reputable commercial electrical contractor in your area.
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