Air Conditioners

[repair-man]

I am surprised at the difference in A/C sizes in different climates. Of course more humid/ hotter climates would need more cooling capacity but a 2 1/2 or 3 Ton in a 1200 square foot house and a 3 1/2 in a 1400 square foot amazes me. My house has a 3 ton basic 10 SEER Carrier that has no problem cooling 2500 square feet. I keep it set at 72 all summer. It's been in the low to mid 90's all summer and in the hottest time of the day it may run 90 % of the time on a 95 degree day. It keeps the humidity at about 45 %.

Toggleswitch, if you can stay at 44% humidity at 77 degrees it must be just the right size. Carrier is big on upsizing the evaporator 1/2 ton to increase humidity removal. It uses no more energy but the larger coil has more surface area for the humidity to condense. (Not to be confusing but the humidity condenses on the evaporator coil !)

Before I went into appliance repair I worked for 4 years in the HVAC business. We installed and serviced Carrier residential systems. This was almost 20 years ago so I am by no means an expert in the field. Just know enough to be dangerous.

Ed

 

[DADoES]

My 3.25-ton in the previous house was 1,278 sq ft, which is why the contractor recommended 2.5 tons. 22-year-old house, single-pane windows.

The 4-ton now is 2,550 sq ft. Year-old house, double-pane windows, better insulation.

 

[tolivac]

I would have to imagine sizing of the household HVAC-and even light commercial units the min and max outdoor temps and humidity would come into play. Say if you live in a humid area the capacity of the unit would have to be greater.also the window and door openings in the building would be a BIG factor-as well as the heat load generated inside the building.A good HVAC man would factor all of these in choosing a unit.

 

[toggleswitch]

Ed, thanks for the thoughts. My A/C does well and I think it is sized well. The installer/contractor thought my request was too small.

I let the house heat up during the day while not in...the the unit works a bit harder when I am finally at home to "catch-up".

But then to re-iterate I have the wall unit for a quick cool!

 

[geoff]

WOW

You guys have some cold blood LOL. Due to my MS, I require 62-65 at night. During the day, I set it at 66 just so the upstairs doesn't get a chance to get so warm that it takes forever to get it back down to 62 again. I guess it's all in your blood, sometimes, 62 feels too hot. I guess to each their own.

Coolness to all,
Geoff

 

[DADoES]

When the outdoor temp is 100°F+ with 110% humidity (LOL), it'd take a hefty system to get 62°F in my house.

 

[toggleswitch]

Well if 62 degrees F works for you--

All the better to spoon with a special hunny.

 

[toggleswitch]

Quoate: When the outdoor temp is 100°F+ with 110% humidity (LOL), it'd take a hefty system to get 62°F in my house.

and if you cant get the temp down enough:

All the better for a swimsuit clad dinner party, with 50 pound blocks of ice as chairs!

 

[foraloysius]

The pathetic excuse for an airconditioner is running at the moment. Not that it's very hot, but the humidity is very high at the moment. I put it on over an hour ago. Temp. then was 22 degree Celcius (72F) and the humidity was 71%. After over an hour the temperature has dropped to 21C (70F) and the humidity is 68%. I wish we had window airconditioners!

 

[kenmore1978]

Sounds like

You need a dehumidifier rather than an air conditioner

 

[jasonl]

My friend has 2 new LG made window units in his bedroom, supposedly the correct btu/h for the rooms and they can't keep up. Even at night when things cool down those little compressors are running like made. The room is cooler than the rest of the house but it's not reaching 74, which is what he has them set.

The units blow cold air but I guess it's not pulling enough hot air out of the room to make it work properly. Plus he's not getting enough dehumidification. I guess he just needs to upgrade to a bigger unit.

 

[spiralactivator]

I've got a GE Carry-Cool that I fished out of the neighbors' trash and while it generally works well, it couldn't do much against the 102-degree heat we had in PA this week. Running full blast, it got the temperature down to 79-80 in its immediate vicinity.

 

[foraloysius]

Stupid thing is that a dehumidifier is even more expensive than the cheap airconditioners. The more expensive model have a separate setting for dehumidifying. Sharp has a new one that looks sleek and is supposed to be very silent. But it's also 700 euros. Which is around $850.-!!!

 

[westytoploader]

OY, those modern window AC units are horrible and really don't cool worth a s**t! I have a cheap Haier 5000 BTU unit down in the shed, which was supposed to be the appropriate size, and it takes FOREVER to cool the place down (but that will change once the dividing wall is up). Heaven forbid you open the door when it's finally the right temperature! I definitely need to find a way to put the Carry-Cool in down there...or get one of those fancy Friedrich units!

We have two central AC units for the house; a large Trane XL1400 (installed 1994-5) which cools the original 1967 section, and a small Rheem unit that cools the pantry, laundry room, and back room (where the Whirlpool and GE Portable reside; added on in 1991 before we moved here). Not sure of the tonnage; will look when I get back tomorrow.

 

[petek]

Louis

Why not sell that thing or trade it for a 2 vent unit, you'll probably be much happier with the performance. Speaking of dehumidifiers I remember my dad buying one when I was oh so very small so that would have been very early sixties and you know that thing is still working away in the basement back home.. It was an Oasis brand, not sure if they're still in biz.

 

[DADoES]

Austin, 5000 BTU to handle your shed? Not the WHOLE shed, without the dividing wall, no way.

 

[geoff]

Austin

In my bedroom I have a GE (Panasonic made) 6000 BTU that I bought last year. It can get my room down to 60 (if so desired). It cools it down to 60 within an hour and then cycles on and off and that's with temps near 100 and a dew point of 75. It sounds like your unit is underpowered for what you are trying to cool. I think an 8000 BTU sounds much more appropriate and more energy efficient. Remember, the less the compressor runs the less energy it draws. No air conditioner should run constantly without cycling on and off. The compressor can overheat and fail.

The 62 degree cold blood LOL
Geoff

 

[geoff]

On another note

I CURSE the day my parents threw this out. Before I bought the new GE I used a 1965 Sunny Yellow One Speed 4000 BTU GE. That thing was friggin amazing. The thermostat had 1-5 settings and then a "constant on" setting. That thing was sooo amazing I once let it run 12 hours on constant on and put a thermometer in my room out of the way of the air conditioner stream. I came back an hour later to find a room temperature of 52 degrees. I was absolutely flabbergasted. I also froze up half the condenser coil LOL. I think it finally maxed out a room temp of 49 degrees before I turned the thermostat WAYYYYYY up. I miss that loud energy hog with a passion.

In mourning,
Geoff

 

[petek]

Well today

my livingroom is insufferable, even downstairs is a little too warm for my liking. I pulled that little GE Carry Cool out of the closet, pulled the screen off my awning window and stuck it there..wait till I post a pic, lol rolled newspaper and the lid of a cardboard box filling in the gaps around it. Course it's way too small, only 4800 btu I think but I can at least go over there and stick my face in front of it.

 

[petek]

Here it is,, jury rigged but cooling

Geoff is this the same one you mentioned above, a Carry Cool. Mine only has one speed, you turn the dial (thermostat) and that's all. Not even an off/off switch. For as old as it is it's still cooling