A/C Residential Arizona

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I removed our A/C condenser intake screen as cotton season is over. Late this year because of cool spring. Wondering if A/C units for Arizona market are especially built for Southwest or are units sized larger? Regards.
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Originally Posted By: Yah-Tah-Hey
I removed our A/C condenser intake screen as cotton season is over. Late this year because of cool spring. Wondering if A/C units for Arizona market are especially built for Southwest or are units sized larger? Regards.
thankyou2.gif



Sized larger. Units selected for a given house are determined by insulation, wall/window area, roof type and area, square footage, and expected outside temperatures.

The great thing about much of Arizona, New Mexico, and parts of west/northwest Texas is that you don't even have to use a traditional AC. With 10% relative humidity, an evaporative cooler will blow 40F air all day long for a fraction of the electricity... though of course it does consume water which may be more costly than electricity at some point.
 
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
Originally Posted By: Yah-Tah-Hey
I removed our A/C condenser intake screen as cotton season is over. Late this year because of cool spring. Wondering if A/C units for Arizona market are especially built for Southwest or are units sized larger? Regards.
thankyou2.gif



Sized larger. Units selected for a given house are determined by insulation, wall/window area, roof type and area, square footage, and expected outside temperatures.

The great thing about much of Arizona, New Mexico, and parts of west/northwest Texas is that you don't even have to use a traditional AC. With 10% relative humidity, an evaporative cooler will blow 40F air all day long for a fraction of the electricity... though of course it does consume water which may be more costly than electricity at some point.

I grew up in Albuquerque and the swamp coolers did a good job when the east mesa looked like the Conquistadors probably saw it five hundred years ago, but as the city grew and more trees and grass and black top replaced mesa, the swamp coolers weren't so efficient any longer. On a visit ten years ago, I asked my brother about turning the air conditioning on and he said it was going full blast. About a year later, a Carrier A/C unit was keeping their home comfortable. Regards
 
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum


The great thing about much of Arizona, New Mexico, and parts of west/northwest Texas is that you don't even have to use a traditional AC. With 10% relative humidity, an evaporative cooler will blow 40F air all day long for a fraction of the electricity... though of course it does consume water which may be more costly than electricity at some point.


Maybe in the old days some of what you say was true before AC was widely available and average humidity was lower. When the humidity reaches 50%, which it does regularly in monsoon season, as in now, swamp coolers don't work. At all. As to blowing 40 degree air, we moved here from Pa and I was quite interested in the evap process and used to measure temps a lot and on the best days of low humidity you can get 30 degrees differential. 40 degrees on a 100 degree day with 10% RH ain't ever happening. More likely 100 outside = 80 out of the vents.

Nobody in Arizona today runs only a cooler. Well, maybe Flagstaff at 7000 feet but that's not typical desert.
 
Originally Posted By: AZjeff
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum


The great thing about much of Arizona, New Mexico, and parts of west/northwest Texas is that you don't even have to use a traditional AC. With 10% relative humidity, an evaporative cooler will blow 40F air all day long for a fraction of the electricity... though of course it does consume water which may be more costly than electricity at some point.


Maybe in the old days some of what you say was true before AC was widely available and average humidity was lower. When the humidity reaches 50%, which it does regularly in monsoon season, as in now, swamp coolers don't work. At all. As to blowing 40 degree air, we moved here from Pa and I was quite interested in the evap process and used to measure temps a lot and on the best days of low humidity you can get 30 degrees differential. 40 degrees on a 100 degree day with 10% RH ain't ever happening. More likely 100 outside = 80 out of the vents.

Nobody in Arizona today runs only a cooler. Well, maybe Flagstaff at 7000 feet but that's not typical desert.


Exactly! 80 degrees is even pushing the limit unless the evap cooler is maintained religiously.

As for the OPs question, remember when the rule of thumb was roughly 500 sq ft per ton of AC? Well,it's not even close anymore. The problem with that rule today is that newer homes are being built to energy efficiency standards which can go to 800 sq ft per ton of AC, or even double/triple that in cooler climates. The reason you don't want to go too big on an HVAC system is that the system will short cycle because it satisfies the thermostat's set temp quicker. Short cycling will not remove enough humidity from the home and make it feel damp and causes more wear and tear on the system also. So no, an AC system is not sized any differently in Arizona than it is in Minnesota, it's size is based off of a load calculation. Look up HVAC load calc and you'll get a better understanding.
 
The fact that they don't work doesn't keep them from advertising swap coolers, even on the east coast where they are useless at best. I'm specifically referring to that Artic Air thing.
 
Originally Posted By: Yah-Tah-Hey
I removed our A/C condenser intake screen as cotton season is over. Late this year because of cool spring. Wondering if A/C units for Arizona market are especially built for Southwest or are units sized larger? Regards.
thankyou2.gif



I've looked online at some new A/C units, and there is some models built specifically for Arizona. Not sure what the difference is though.

I went on www.hvacdirect.com and selected a random Goodman 13 SEER 3 ton unit, and it says at the bottom:

Quote:
This unit (and all 13 SEER units) cannot be shipped or installed in the following states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia
Click here to see the 14 SEER unit that is available in these states.
For more information about state efficiency requirements, please click here.


Then I found a different 14 SEER unit and it too can't be installed in Arizona:

Quote:
This unit cannot be shipped or installed in the following states: Arizona, California, Nevada, and New Mexico
Click here to see the unit that is available in these states.
For more information about state efficiency requirements, please click here.


Our units are sized larger though. My house is 1,400 square feet and has a 3-1/2 ton A/C. If I were somehow able to magically scoop up this house and plant it in New York, the unit would be way oversized, it would cool it but would short cycle and be very humid in the house. Not good for the unit either.

Same as if you scooped up a NY house and put it in Phoenix. There's no way it could keep cool in the summer.
 
I have a 4 ton in my 1655 sq ft house. On really hot days like last week it runs almost continuously to keep the house at 73.

It was so hot I had 3 birds fall dead out of the tree in the front yard and then something came along overnight and ate them
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Not only 'size' but design as latent heat loads are much lower where you live vs. here & East of here in the humid South. Here, both sensible & latent heat removal is critical.
 
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