If your air conditioner is 10 years and older, there is probably very little "green" about it except it costs you some extra "green" in terms of your monthly electrical bill. However if the unit has been recently upgraded you need to find out its SEER number to determine how efficient (aka "green") it is. As of January 2006, the federal government mandates that all new central air conditioning equipment be at least 13 SEER, but there is equipment available that is rated as high as 18 and even 23 SEER. If your AC's SEER number is above 15, it is certainly a "green" one!

What is SEER Number?
The efficiency of air conditioners is rated by the Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER) which is defined by the Air Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute in its standard ARI 210=240, Performance Rating of Unitary Air-Conditioning and Air-Source Heat Pump Equipment.

The SEER rating of a unit is the cooling output in Btu (British thermal unit) during a typical cooling-season divided by the total electric energy input in watt-hours during the same period. The higher the unit's SEER rating the more energy efficient it is.

Check out Cooling Calculator provided by ACdoctor.com to see the impact on your wallet and your environmental footprint that higher SEER air conditioning can have for you.