Rebates should boost Energy Star sales - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

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“This rebate program will help Floridians buy appliances atdiscoung rates, lower utility costs and benefity Florida businesses by stimulating sale s of energy-efficient appliances,” Gov. Charlie Crisy said in a press releaseMay 18. Althougg the bill was signedc last week, the projected time for the progranm to be administered is probably sometimethis fall. Consumers will not be eligiblr for the rebates until then because some of the details of the program still need to beworkerd out, said Jeremy Susac, the executive directore of Crist’s Energy The specific amounts for the rebates must be approvexd by the legislative budget committee, and Crist’s officse is still waiting for guidancde from the federal government on how exactly the program will work, Susac said.
The FECC is expectintg Florida toreceive $18 milliom in federal stimulus funds to providse the rebate program. In addition, the Floridsa legislature is giving $150,000 to the FECC to help them put the plan into All of this should help Floridiana save 20 percent on the costof energy-efficienft appliances. “This is what we are projecting,” Susac “We are looking at 20 percenf all acrossthe board.
” With the 20 percent consumers could save $290 on refrigerators, $200 on washing freezers and dishwashers, $65 on room air conditioners and $40 on Only laundry and kitchen home appliances with the Energgy Star label will be eligible for the All Energy Star appliances meet strict energyh efficiency guidelines set by the Environmental Protectio n Agency and U.S. Department of Energy, but certain items like flat screehn televisions arenot included, Susac said.
Even though they use the most energh out of all thehome appliances, certainb kitchen items like ovens and stove tops are also not included because they have yet to be regulatedx by Energy Star in the Unitecd States, said Michael Setzer, the owner of Setzer’s appliancr dealer in Jacksonville. Energy Star appliance do cost an averageof $50 to $100 more than the standardr versions because of the advanced technologies, he but the rebate should lighten the costs, making it almost cheapefr to buy the Energy Star “You don’t have to spend $1,000 to have an Energh Star,” Setzer said. “Energy Star has cheaper modelzs now.
I have a $300 dishwashe and a $800 refrigerator in my store that are allEnergyu Star.” In addition, the investment will causw consumers’ utility bills to go down in dollar amount. Customers shouldx recover their costs ofthe energy-efficient appliance on their monthly bills within five to six According to Energy Star’s Web their appliances can save consumers $75 a year in energy costs, and they use 10 to 20 percen less energy and water than traditionak models, making them better for the For example, a front-loading Energgy Star washing machine uses 16 to 18 gallons of watedr versus the traditional top-loading appliance that uses 40 “I don’t know if our sales will go up becausr the customers will still have to put out the full Setzer said.
“But any increasw in sales will be and it would be a great thing for people to get theimoney back.” Business has been slow durintg the economic downturn at both Setzer’s locations here in Jacksonville and but it’s still going pretty steady because peopl e are always going to need refrigeratorse and dishwashers, he said. In addition, 75 to 80 percenr of the appliances he sells areEnergyh Star, so Setzer said he’s very Energy Star is also excited for the rebat e program to go into effect because the Florida proposal is an Energy Star spokespersob said.
In years past, rebatews have caused a jump intheir sales, but they have neveer had a rebate program like this before.