APPENDIX 8-A. USER INSTRUCTIONS FOR LIFE-CYCLE COST AND 

PAYBACK PERIOD SPREADSHEET

TABLE OF CONTENTS

8-A.1 DEFINITIONS.......................................................................................................8-A-1

8-A.2 BASIC INSTRUCTIONS......................................................................................8-A-3

8A-i
APPENDIX 8-A. USER INSTRUCTIONS FOR LIFE-CYCLE COST AND PAYBACK 

PERIOD SPREADSHEET

8-A.1 DEFINITIONS

The interested reader can examine and reproduce detailed results of the U.S. Department 

of Energy’s (DOE’s) life-cycle cost (LCC) and payback period (PBP) analysis for residential 

dehumidifiers by using Microsoft Excel spreadsheets available on DOE’s website at

http://www1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/residential/dehumidifiers.html. 

To fully execute the spreadsheets requires both Microsoft Excel and Crystal Ball software. Both 

applications are commercially available. Crystal Ball is available at www.decisioneering.com. 

The latest version of the workbook, which is posted on the DOE website, was tested 

using Microsoft Excel 2007. The LCC and PBP workbook for residential dehumidifiers

comprises the following worksheets.

Summary Presents the results of an analysis in terms of average LCC, LCC

savings, and median, average, and undefined PBP for all 

dehumidifier product classes. A table includes, for each efficiency 

level considered, installed price; lifetime operating cost; LCC;

average savings; and the percentage of customers that would incur 

a net cost, no impact, or net savings from each standard level. The 

user can stipulate three parameters for a simulation run: whether 

the AEO energy price trend reflects an economic case that is 

reference, low-growth, or high-growth (reference is default); and 

the number of simulation runs to be performed within a range of 

1000–10,000 (10,000 is default). 

LCC & Payback The LCC&Payback worksheet shows LCC and PBP calculation 

results for different efficiency levels for a single Residential 

Energy Consumption Survey (RECS) 2009 household. During a 

Crystal Ball simulation, the spreadsheet records the LCC and PBP 

values for every sampled household.

Rebuttable Payback The Rebuttable Payback worksheet contains the installation costs, 

energy use calculations, and the simple PBP calculations for each 

efficiency level.

RECS Sample The RECS Sample worksheet contains the RECS 2009 household 

data for each product type. During a Crystal Ball simulation, DOE 

uses these household characteristics to determine the analysis 

parameters.

8-A-1
Weather Data The Weather Data sheet contains the RECS 2009 household data 

matched with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration’s National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) weather 

stations data. 

Vapor Density Table Calculates the average vapor density for each month. It also 

calculates the annual operating hours by mode for the sampled 

household with a portable unit dehumidifier. 

Usage Contains probability distribution of operating hours by mode for 

whole-home dehumidifiers. It also contains information of fanonly and standby power demand for each product type. 

Base-Case Efficiency Gives the market shares for efficiency levels in the base case.

Distribution

Equipment Prices Develops total installed cost for dehumidifiers in 2012$. This sheet 

provides baseline and incremental manufacturer costs, retail price, 

sales tax, and installation cost for both product classes and each 

efficiency level. Includes the assumptions used about markups and 

sales tax.

Energy Prices Contains the regional prices in 2012$ for electricity used in the 

LCC and PBP analysis.

Energy Price Trends Contains the electricity price trends for the reference, high, and 

low economic growth scenarios based on AEO 2013.

Discount Rate Contains data from which an average discount rate and a 

distribution of discount rates are determined.

Lifetime Presents the average lifetime, in years, for portable unit and wholehome dehumidifiers, the Weibull parameters used for the survival 

function, and a graph of the Weibull retirement function for 

portable unit and whole-home dehumidifiers, respectively.

Forecast Cells Gives details regarding base-case efficiency distributions for all 

dehumidifier product classes. Median, minimum, maximum, and 

average values are given, along with 5th, 25th, 50th, 75th, and 95th

percentile values. Included are product prices and details of the 

LCC and PBP (LCC savings in terms of money, energy, and the 

percentages of customers that would experience a net cost, no 

impact, or net savings from each efficiency level). 

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8-A.2 BASIC INSTRUCTIONS

Basic instructions for operating the LCC spreadsheet are provided below.

1. After downloading the LCC file from DOE’s website, use Microsoft Excel to open 

it. At the bottom of the workbook, click on the tab for the sheet labeled Summary. 

2. Use Excel’s “View/Zoom” command in the top menu bar to change the size of the

display so that it fits your monitor.

3. Use the graphical interface in the spreadsheet to choose parameters or enter data. 

You can change the default choices for the three inputs listed under "User Input" 

(energy price trend, start year, and number of simulation runs). To change a default 

input, select the desired value from the drop-down choices by the input box.

4. After selecting the desired parameters, click the “Run” button. The spreadsheet will 

minimize until the simulation is complete, and will then re-open with the updated 

results.

8-A-3