If you’re in the market for a new air conditioner, then you may have learned that you’ll need a calculation of your living space in order to assess what size air conditioner you’ll need to cool your home effectively and efficiently. Bigger is not better when it comes to air conditioning. This is a common mistake, and such homeowners will pay for inefficient (and sometimes inadequate) cooling for the next decade as a result.
In this post, we’d like to review the question of how an air conditioner capacity is measured, so that you can stay informed about how your AC works. For more information, or to schedule Arlington, VA air conditioning service, contact the pros at OASIS Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration, Inc. today!
Your air conditioner unit uses several measurements to determine its cooling capacity. One such unit is known as the British thermal unit (BTU). It is an international standard, and it is equal to the amount of energy required to raise the temperature of one pound of water by 1° Fahrenheit. In the world of AC terminology, a BTU stands for the amount of energy required to remove that thermal unit from the room. An associated unit of measurement is the ton. One ton of cooling capacity equals about 12,000 BTUH (BTUs per hour). Thus, if you have a 3-ton unit, it can remove about 36,000 BTUs every hour. The unit of the ton is derived somewhat roughly from how much energy it would require to melt a ton of ice uniformly over the course of 24 hours. Thus, our modern AC jargon is handed down from the days when homeowners used ice to cool their homes.
Remember that only a professional will be able to assess adequately what type of cooling capacity in BTUH and tons you will need to cool your home effectively and efficiently. For more information, or to schedule air conditioning installation in Arlington, VA, call the experts at OASIS Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration, Inc. today!
