Is the rule of thumb of one ton of cooling per 400 square feet of living space still appropriate for the energy efficient building code of three years ago and/or the one effective in March of 2002?
Rules of thumb should not be used. Our energy-efficient Lakeland house for example (http://www.fsec.ucf.edu/en/publications/html/FSEC-CR-1044-98/index.htm), uses a two-ton system to cool the 2400 square foot residence (or 1200 square feet per ton), and does a better job than the comparison home’s 4-ton unit. A good sizing procedure that takes into account a house’s construction type, insulation levels, glass area and orientation etc., such as the Air Conditioning Contractors of America’s Manual J procedure should be used to size cooling systems. Even then it’s important that the procedure is used as intended and the size it recommends is not rounded up (or down) or otherwise modified. You may also be interested in reading how much of a problem over sizing is in Florida at http://www.fsec.ucf.edu/en/publications/html/FSEC-PF-328-97/index.
Related Questions
- Is the rule of thumb of one ton of cooling per 400 square feet of living space still appropriate for the energy efficient building code of three years ago and/or the one effective in March of 2002?
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