What size AC for Saraland, AL? 3.5 tons for 2,000 sq ft

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

3.5 tons central AC or heat pump, about 40,200 BTU/hr of load

Here the 20 BTU per square foot chart lands close: 3.5 tons against a load of 3.4 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 596 square feet in this climate. For a single room, size by the room: 20.1 BTU/hr per square foot.

The climate it is sized for

Climate from NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals at Mobile (14.4 mi away). Jul is the hottest month, averaging a high of 90.9°F and a low of 73.1°F, with about 78 days a year at 90°F or more. That gives a design temperature of 97°F against 75°F inside.

What it costs to run

About 4,082 kWh a year at SEER2 14.3, or roughly $674 at Alabama's average residential rate of 16.51¢ per kWh. Cooling runs 7 months of the year here.

What drives the load in Saraland

Of the 40,200 BTU/hr, 15,840 comes through walls, roof and windows on a 97°F afternoon (39%), 13,000 is sun on the house (32%), 2,120 is four people and their appliances, and 9,300 is moisture the coil has to wring out of Saraland'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 30,960 BTU/hr before the moisture allowance.

Other house sizes in Saraland

Single rooms with a window or mini-split unit: a 150 sq ft bedroom needs about 3,000 BTU/hr; a 350 sq ft living room needs about 7,000 BTU/hr; a 600 sq ft open plan kitchen and family room needs about 12,100 BTU/hr.

Month by month in Saraland

Jul alone uses 20% of the year's cooling energy. The unit runs the equivalent of 1,450 hours a year at full output.

Saraland against nearby cities

Of 66 Alabama cities here, Saraland has the 17th highest cooling load. The range runs from Boaz at 30,600 BTU/hr to Montgomery at 44,000.

Where Saraland's weather numbers come from

The nearest NOAA station with full 1991 to 2020 normals is Mobile, 14.4 miles from the center of Saraland at 289 ft above sea level. That is close enough that the station's summers are Saraland's summers.

1 other city uses the same station and get the same climate inputs. The closest to Saraland: Prichard (6 mi away, 9.1 mi from the station). Saraland is farther from the station than 1 of them.

The sun over Saraland in late July

At 30.85°N, the noon sun on 21 July stands 79.5° above the horizon over Saraland and the day runs 13 h 43 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.

16,458 people live in Saraland, the 41st largest of the 66 Alabama cities sized on this site. Coordinates used: 30.8545, -88.1098.

Saraland AC sizing questions