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Btu Cooling

BTU Portable Air Conditioner

Choosing a BTU portable air conditioner for a home or office space can be difficult. There are some things that must be established before making such a purchase. The size of the space that is in need of cooling is the very first thing that must be determined before choosing an air conditioning unit. Most units will say how many rooms they will cool or what size space. This does not usually account for rooms with high ceilings or those that are larger than a normal eight by ten space.

Portable units work excellently in small spaces and usually a unit of approximately 10,000-12,000 BTU can be used to effectively cool a one or two room space. Obviously the smaller the space the cooler it will be, larger spaces will be slightly less cool but in the warmth of the summer this will usually provide significant relief from the heat.

Larger portable units can work well in larger open living spaces such as living room, dining room, kitchen combos where there are not solid doors separating these spaces. Many times placement of a 25,000 BTU unit in one of the middle rooms can help cool a larger combo area such as this effectively. Of course it will be more effective if combined with ceiling fans or other fans strategically placed. This will increase the overall cooling affect of the air conditioning unit.

Another important factor in determining the right portable air conditioning is the size window that this unit will be placed in. If this item does not fit in a window in the room that it is being purchased to cool it may need to be mounted in an exterior wall. Many individuals prefer this option as it allows them to have a cool room and still allows the sunlight to enter the room through the windows. It is a relatively simple process to mount a portable unit in the outside wall of a structure.

When shopping for a portable unit it is important to make sure that the air conditioner is compatible with the circuits in the space that is in need of cooling. It is important to make sure that the plug is compatible and also that the circuit that will be maintaining the air unit will have enough power to continuously run the cooling unit over time. In an older home, a new circuit may be required to maintain such a high power device on its own circuit to avoid power outages.

A BTU portable air conditioner or even several of them can really help save money in the hot summer months. Unlike a central air conditioning system portable air conditioners use a lot less electricity and can help reduce high monthly electric bills.

 

The basic concept behind the creation of all air conditioning units remains common. The same is the case with fundamental components needed: Every air conditioner has working fluid, pump, evaporator and condenser.

Thermostat and expansion valve are also indispensable components. There are features unique to each type of air conditioning system in apart from the common features.

A comprehensive research of the available brands is essential for determining the model that best fits your requirements, lifestyle and budget.

They are famous for their portability. As the meaning implies, the portable air conditioner is on wheels, facilitating the movement across various rooms.

They can have up to 4,100 watts of output, and the purchase of electric resistance heaters along with the unit is left to the choice of customers. These units are available as two variants.

 

1) Split air conditioners

2) Mono block air conditioners

 

They are in need of ducts to release the air outside, hot air in case of cooling and cool air in case of heating. The efficiency is less if you compare it with other types of air conditioners and it may not be possible in rooms where there is no outlet for hot air to escape.

 

Central Air Conditioning Units

They are popular in well developed countries like USA and the UK.

 

They use ducts to distribute dehumidified (moisture content reduced air or in simple terms hot air) or cool air to a large sized room or multiple rooms. They are also able to use pipes to transport chilled water to heat exchangers.

There are two ways of installing this unit. One way is to place some components inside and others outside of the room.

The other way is to use it as a single composite unit placed at top of roofs or in the centre of vast areas such as college libraries etc.

The benefits offered by this category of air conditioners over weigh the ones offered by other varieties.

The first is that the air is filtered when using this system, making the air cleaner and easier to breathe which is especially beneficial to asthma patients.

Moreover the system is quieter and less disruptive than several other units.

Other Types of Air Conditioning Units

While central and portable air conditioning units are the most common, there are other types of systems as well. These air conditioning systems include mini split air conditioners, evaporative coolers etc.

Once you are acquainted with the facts, deciding on the appropriate one will be a simple task.

So prioritize your desires. If you are looking for convenience as the main criteria, you would find portable air conditioning system as a good choice.

However, if efficiency and cleanliness are your predominant choices, then choose a central air conditioning unit.

About the Author

I am Mohan read mathematics at Stanford and remained there for his MS. From 1998-1999 on researched in Evolution and in Animal Behavior in  Camrbidge, UK. I was was then a professor in the departments of Anthropology and Biology, New Jersy College, USA. Now teaches at the department of Zoology. Carried out research in several areas of evolutionary biology, particularly in sexual selection and the comparative method.

How can I convert cooling capacity specified in Watts into Btu/Hr terms to compare using same parameters(AC) ?

1 watt is 3.412 Btu/h
1Btu/h is .2931 watt

Use this to convert your cooling capacity units. This watt rating is the amount of cooling power. It is not the same as the number of watts of AC power coming into the unit. The unit has a certain efficiency at converting electricity into cooling capacity. Some power is wasted in overcoming friction, powering controls, etc.

Let's say your unit is 8000Btu/h and 80% efficient:

8000Btu/h * .2931w / 1Btu/h = 2344.8w cooling

2344.8w * 100 / 80 = 2931w from the AC line.

Only 80% of the power from the line goes to cooling in this example, this is your 8000Btu/h.

BTU Heating & Cooling Inc. - Amsterdam, NY