What size AC for Natchez, MS? 3.5 tons for 2,000 sq ft

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

3.5 tons central AC or heat pump, about 36,900 BTU/hr of load

Here the 20 BTU per square foot chart lands close: 3.5 tons against a load of 3.1 tons. This is one of the climates the chart was written for.

If a contractor quotes you more than 3.5 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 651 square feet in this climate. For a single room, size by the room: 18.4 BTU/hr per square foot.

The climate it is sized for

Climate from NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals at Natchez (4.2 mi away). Jul is the hottest month, averaging a high of 89.5°F and a low of 71.3°F, with about 67 days a year at 90°F or more. That gives a design temperature of 96°F against 75°F inside.

What it costs to run

About 3,105 kWh a year at SEER2 14.3, or roughly $468 at Mississippi's average residential rate of 15.06¢ per kWh. Cooling runs 7 months of the year here.

What drives the load in Natchez

Of the 36,900 BTU/hr, 15,120 comes through walls, roof and windows on a 96°F afternoon (41%), 13,000 is sun on the house (35%), 2,120 is four people and their appliances, and 6,700 is moisture the coil has to wring out of Natchez's summer air (18%).

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 30,240 BTU/hr before the moisture allowance.

Other house sizes in Natchez

Single rooms with a window or mini-split unit: a 150 sq ft bedroom needs about 2,800 BTU/hr; a 350 sq ft living room needs about 6,400 BTU/hr; a 600 sq ft open plan kitchen and family room needs about 11,000 BTU/hr.

Month by month in Natchez

Jul alone uses 23% of the year's cooling energy. The unit runs the equivalent of 1,203 hours a year at full output.

Natchez against nearby cities

Of 41 Mississippi cities here, Natchez has the 39th highest cooling load. The range runs from Brookhaven at 36,900 BTU/hr to Columbus at 44,000.

Where Natchez's weather numbers come from

The nearest NOAA station with full 1991 to 2020 normals is Natchez, 4.2 miles from the center of Natchez at 195 ft above sea level. That is close enough that the station's summers are Natchez's summers.

No other city in this set uses Natchez, so this sizing is Natchez's alone.

The sun over Natchez in late July

At 31.54°N, the noon sun on 21 July stands 78.9° above the horizon over Natchez and the day runs 13 h 46 min from sunrise to sunset. A lower noon sun puts more of the day's heat on east and west walls than on the roof, which is why shading west glass pays off here. Shorter days give the house a longer night to shed the day's heat.

14,233 people live in Natchez, the 26th largest of the 41 Mississippi cities sized on this site. Coordinates used: 31.5424, -91.3856.

Natchez AC sizing questions