As we wrap up the first half of the year and continue to recover from the challenges brought on by the pandemic, many business owners are making new projections about costs, revenue and profit. While you’re making these deliberations about your bottom line, you should consider how you can adjust your energy usage to save monthly. At FPL, we offer programs and services specifically designed to help business owners, like yourself, trim your energy costs and have one less thing to worry about.
Rebates to help you keep cool
Since cooling costs typically make up the largest part of a business’s energy bill, many of the programs below focus on ways you can cut costs while giving your customers respite from the Florida heat:
- Direct-Expansion (DX) Air Conditioning: Upgrading an old cooling system to a newer, more efficient one can help bring down a business’s air conditioning costs. FPL’s DX Air Conditioning program provides rebates to those replacing an old system, installing a DX system in a new facility or looking to upgrade to a high-efficiency model.
- Demand Control Ventilation (DCV): DCV adjusts a building’s ventilation based on occupancy and helps A/C units work more efficiently. This can result in lower maintenance costs, a longer life span for the system and lower carbon emissions. With DCV, your business can save up to 20% annually on HVAC costs. FPL offers rebates to help businesses upgrade this technology.
- Kitchen Demand Control Ventilation (KDCV): Many kitchen exhaust systems waste energy by operating at full capacity even when cooking appliances are idle. A KDCV system minimizes the energy needed to safely ventilate your business’s kitchen, maximizing the ability of the exhaust hood to contain heat and smoke. FPL’s rebate program can help you pay for a new KDCV unit, which can lead to up to 50% savings in ventilation-related energy costs.
- Energy Recovery Ventilation (ERV): Another system related to cooling, an ERV controls indoor humidity levels and installing one can reduce the A/C load by 20%. These are particularly important in hot and humid climates like ours — an ERV recovers energy from building exhaust air and reuses it to precondition fresh, outside air required for ventilation.
- Chiller: Replacing an old chiller with a new, energy-efficient model can lower operating and maintenance costs, increase energy savings and improve reliability. FPL offers rebates to help offset the cost of installing a new unit at your business.
- Thermal Energy Storage (TES): TES systems can cost more than a standard A/C unit but can help save money and energy by allowing your business to pay lower time-of-use rates, reducing energy demand and minimizing the need to buy large A/C compressors. They use energy storage tanks to shift some or all of a building’s cooling needs to off-peak hours.
Lighting the way to savings
Interior lighting accounts for more than a quarter of a typical business’s energy consumption, meaning the switch to energy-efficient lamps and bulbs can make a considerable difference in monthly energy costs. FPL’s Business Lighting Program not only helps you find the best lighting system for your business but also provides rebates for each qualifying system.
Creativity that pays off
While FPL offers an array of incentives and rebates for specific energy efficiency changes, we also look to reward creative saving ideas. If your business has found a unique way to cut down on energy costs, you may be eligible for a custom incentive. You may qualify if your idea:
- Will trim at least 25 kilowatts from summer peak demand (June through September).
- Differs from other FPL conservation programs.
- Passes the Florida Public Service Commission’s specified cost-effectiveness tests.
- Is not a power generation technology, proposal based on fuel switching or wheeling or a technology currently being evaluated by FPL.
Contact your FPL customer representative or the Business Care Center at 1-800-FPL-2434 to find out if your business idea qualifies!
With all these programs and rebates, businesses have plenty of ways to help bring their energy costs down. Learn all about these programs at FPL’s Business Programs and Resources Page, and keep an eye on the content hub for new articles each month with information and creative ideas to help your business save on energy costs.
For more tips on ways to save on your energy bill for home or business, read more.