Tax Credits You Shouldn't Miss For 2013

This is a good year to move ahead with those energy-efficiency improvements you’ve been wanting to do around your house. With the likelihood of increasing costs for electricity and natural gas, coupled with the hot summers and cold winters we get here in northwest Arkansas, replacing your older HVAC equipment with more efficient models makes good economic sense any year. However, federal tax credits that have been reinstated for 2013 (and made retroactive to 2012) make energy-efficiency investments in your home look even better.

Following is a brief list of types of equipment that qualify for the tax credits this year. Besides the items listed here, there are also credits for other energy-efficiency improvements including upgrading insulation and installing qualifying windows. These tax credits come in different amounts, though the total in combination that you can claim is capped at $500.

• Energy-efficient water heaters qualify for credits of 10 percent of the cost up to $300. These include high-efficiency electric heat-pump water heaters and propane, oil or natural gas water heaters with thermal efficiencies of at least 90 percent.
• Oil, natural gas or propane furnaces and boilers with an AFUE (annual fuel utilization efficiency) of at least 95 percent qualify for credits up to $150.
• Air conditioning systems with qualifying SEER ratings (the ratio of cooling output measured in British Thermal Units to fuel input measured in watt-hours) are eligible for tax credits up to $300.
• A tax credit up to $50 is available for main circulating fans that consume less than 2 percent of a furnace or air conditioning system’s total energy use.

Energy efficiency standards and available credits can be a confusing issue for homeowners, so read our blog for more information about efficiency ratings or contact us at Paschal Heat, Air & Geothermal for help with any questions you may have. We have served northwest Arkansas businesses and homeowners for over 40 years.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Northwest Arkansas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about Tax Credits and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

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