What size AC for Margate, FL? 4 tons for 2,000 sq ft

What size AC a 2,000 sq ft house in Margate needs

4 tons central AC or heat pump, about 42,100 BTU/hr of load

Here the 20 BTU per square foot chart lands close: 3.5 tons against a load of 3.5 tons. This is one of the climates the chart was written for.

If a contractor quotes you more than 4 tons for an average 2,000 sq ft house here, ask to see the Manual J load calculation behind it before you sign. That works out to one ton per 570 square feet in this climate. For a single room, size by the room: 21.1 BTU/hr per square foot.

The climate it is sized for

Climate from NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals at Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport (4 mi away). Aug is the hottest month, averaging a high of 91.4°F and a low of 76.8°F, with about 93 days a year at 90°F or more. That gives a design temperature of 99°F against 75°F inside.

What it costs to run

About 7,031 kWh a year at SEER2 14.3, or roughly $1,077 at Florida's average residential rate of 15.32¢ per kWh. Cooling runs 12 months of the year here.

What drives the load in Margate

Of the 42,100 BTU/hr, 17,280 comes through walls, roof and windows on a 99°F afternoon (41%), 13,000 is sun on the house (31%), 2,120 is four people and their appliances, and 9,700 is moisture the coil has to wring out of Margate's summer air (23%).

Heat through the shell is the biggest share here, so insulation and air sealing cut the size you need more than shading would. Sensible heat totals 32,400 BTU/hr before the moisture allowance.

Other house sizes in Margate

Single rooms with a window or mini-split unit: a 150 sq ft bedroom needs about 3,200 BTU/hr; a 350 sq ft living room needs about 7,400 BTU/hr; a 600 sq ft open plan kitchen and family room needs about 12,700 BTU/hr.

Month by month in Margate

Aug alone uses 13% of the year's cooling energy. The unit runs the equivalent of 2,387 hours a year at full output.

Margate against nearby cities

Of 173 Florida cities here, Margate has the 48th highest cooling load. The range runs from Miami Shores at 36,500 BTU/hr to Plant City at 44,900.

Where Margate's weather numbers come from

The nearest NOAA station with full 1991 to 2020 normals is Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport, 4 miles from the center of Margate at 12 ft above sea level. That is close enough that the station's summers are Margate's summers.

9 other cities use the same station and get the same climate inputs. The closest to Margate: North Lauderdale (3 mi away, 2.9 mi from the station), Coral Springs (3 mi away, 7.1 mi from the station), Tamarac (4 mi away, 4.9 mi from the station), Lauderdale Lakes (6 mi away, 2.6 mi from the station), Parkland (6 mi away, 9.7 mi from the station). Margate is farther from the station than 5 of them.

The sun over Margate in late July

At 26.25°N, the noon sun on 21 July stands 84.2° above the horizon over Margate and the day runs 13 h 25 min from sunrise to sunset. With the sun that close to overhead, the roof takes most of the heat at midday and the west wall takes the rest after 3 pm. Shorter days give the house a longer night to shed the day's heat.

60,650 people live in Margate, the 52nd largest of the 173 Florida cities sized on this site. Coordinates used: 26.2480, -80.2112.

Margate AC sizing questions