Will More BTU's Cool My Room Faster?

If you’re wondering if an air conditioner with higher BTU’s will cool your room faster, it is possible, but it depends. It depends on whether the room is the right size for the air conditioner being used. It also depends on the total cubic feet of the room to be cooled, so if the ceiling height is higher than 10 feet, that is added cubic feet which requires additional cooling power or more BTU’s.

Generally, when high ceilings are involved, an additional 10% needs to be added to the BTU rating for the room to be cooled down successfully. Below is the chart to use for BTU and room size.
To Cool 150 square feet, you need a 5400 BTU unit
To Cool 200 square feet, you need a 6000 BTU unit
To Cool 340 square feet, you need an 8000 BTU unit
To Cool 400 square feet, you need a 9000 BTU unit
To Cool 450 square feet, you need a 10,000 BTU unit

If that room is a kitchen, which generates heat for cooking through the use of ovens, stove tops or grills, add at least 4,000 BTU’s to the unit’s cooling capacity. If your room has unusually high ceilings, add to the BTU’s needed. For instance, the average ceiling height for homes built in the 1970’s was seven feet, six inches. Even older homes average around nine feet. Today, many homes feature ceilings that are vaulted or multiple stories high. These features will have to be considered when determining how many BTU’s are needed to cool the room down. Start by adding 10%, even more may be needed depending on the design of the room.

Air conditioner how many BTU is a good question, that can only be answered after you’ve considered your room’s size and the weather for area where you live. Homes in the middle of a sweltering heat belt require more BTU’s to cool down than the same room size in a New England home. If your home is located in Maine, follow the chart, if it’s in Miami, add an additional 10-20% to the BTU rating of your air conditioning unit.

More is not better. A unit with too many BTU’s, will cool the room fast, but leave the room humid. Too few BTU’s will never cool the room down and the unit will run incessantly. To be sure you’re making the right decision, call us to get answers about air conditioner sizes and efficiency.