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Ice used to illustrate the definition of 1 ton of cooling capacity (C) Carson Dunlop AssociatesTons of Cooling Capacity
Definition of Tons of Cooling, Tons translated to other measures

Cooling capacity expressed in Tons:

Definition of tons of cooling, and calculation of other cooling measures such as BTUs or Calories from Tons.

This article series defines Heat Loss, R-value, U-value, & K-Value measures of heating loss rate or insulation effectiveness and provides basic building insulation and heat loss guidelines.

Illustrations of melting ice and homes asking how much area can one tone cool were provided courtesy of Carson Dunlop Associates, a Toronto home inspection, education, and report-writing firm.

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Definitions of Tons of Cooling Capacity

How much can one ton of cooling actually cool a building? (C) Carson Dunlop AssociatesThis article provides a table giving various equivalents of one ton of cooling capacity.

We provide several rules of thumb for translating "tons" of cooling into other measures.

[Click to enlarge any image]

To go directly to tables of required BTUh of cooling capacity for various climate zones, see COOLING CLIMATE ZONE BTU REQUIREMENTS.

Air Conditioner / Heat Pump Size & Capacity table

"One ton" of cooling capacity, historically, referred to the cooling capacity of a ton of ice.

Re-stated we can define one ton of cooling capacity as the amount of heat energy absorbed in the melting of one ton of ice over a 24-hour period.

One ton of cooling capacity is the same as 12,000 BTU's per hour of cooling capacity or 288,000 BTUs of cooling capacity provided over a period of 24 hours (12,000 x 24 hours = 288,000).

Table of Tons of Cooling Capacity Equivalents

Measurement Equivalent measurement / rule of thumb Comments
1 ton of cooling capacity 12,000 BTU's per hour  
1 ton of cooling capacity 288,000 BTUs of cooling capacity provided over a period of 24 hours  
1 ton of cooling capacity 1 hp or 1 horsepower compressor motor for occupied space (not refrigeration systems) rule of thumb
1 ton of cooling capacity 350 cfm air flow required for high-latent-heat HVAC applications rule of thumb
1 ton of cooling capacity 400 cfm air flow required in a conventional air conditioning system

AIR FLOW RATE TYPICAL CFM

rule of thumb

1 ton of cooling capacity 500 cfm air flow required for heat pumps and sensible heat designs rule of thumb
1 ton of cooling capacity 600 sq. ft. of conditioned floor area cooled for normal residential occupancy rule of thumb
1 tonne of refrigeration Rate of heat removal to freeze 1 metric tone of water (1000kg) at 0°C in 24-hours  
1 tonne of refrigeration 13,898 kJ/h or kilojoules per hour  
1 tonne of refrigeration 3.861 kW/h or kilowatts per hour  
     

Notes to the table:

To determine the cooling capacity of a specific air conditioner or heat pump, see COOLING CAPACITY, RATED - How to Determine Air Conditioning Equipment Rated Cooling Capacity, How to determine the rated cooling capacity of an air conditioner.

Watch out: we have seen HVACR companies, technicians, articles, and websites giving the area that one ton of A/C cooling capacity can cool at numbers ranging from 80 sq.ft. to 600 sq.ft.

Some of this variation is doubtless due to climate variations: an air conditioning system in a sunny tropical area in a building with lots of windows needs more capacity than an air conditioner or heat pump coolign the same square foot area in a northern climate.

Typical Air Conditioner Capacity, Tons vs. Area for CLIMATE ZONES for the U.S are given in a table at COOLING CLIMATE ZONE BTU REQUIREMENTS

Other reasons for the wide range in the cooling capacity of a one-ton A/C or heat pump unit are probably "opinion" and still other reasons for the variation are differences in the rate of heat gain of individual buildings of different age, construction, orientation, insulation, air leakage, etc.

If you are looking for heating BTUh requirements see HEATING CLIMATE ZONE BTU REQUIREMENTS

Also see DEGREE DAY HEATING DEGREE DAYS or COOLING DEGREE DAYS

Lots of electrical appliances include a label providing the appliance's wattage, and in the case of heating and air conditioning equipment, lots of other details are provided too.


...

Continue reading at BTUs DEFINITIONS OF or select a topic from the closely-related articles below, or see the complete ARTICLE INDEX.

A/C DATA TAGS - find information and capacity of an air conditioner or heat pump from its data tag

AIR CONDITIONER BTU CHART choosing the right sized air conditioner

COOLING CAPACITY, RATED - determine the rated cooling capacity of an air conditioner or heat pump

Or see CONVERT BTUs to TONS of COOLING CAPACITY

DEFINITION of HEATING, COOLING & INSULATION TERMS

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TONS of COOLING CAPACITY at InspectApedia.com - online encyclopedia of building & environmental inspection, testing, diagnosis, repair, & problem prevention advice.


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