Podcast episode by Derek Cole explaining how HVAC unit sizing is determined and why bigger is not always better. Covers load analysis, ductwork and house factors (windows, insulation, shading), effects of oversizing (short-cycling and poor dehumidification), permits and code checks, and recommendations to verify systems before replacing equipment.
Chapters
Foreign. I'm Derek Cole, host of the Derek Cole Podcast, and we believe in taking the time to explain how things work for your air at home or your business. Let's get into today's episode. Please listen closely and maybe even take some notes so you can remember these insights of home comfort and energy savings and share this episode with three of your friends because we all need to share better ways to be more comfortable at home. Be sure to tag me or DM me on Instagram Derek Mcole so I can say hi. Thanks again for listening. And let's begin. When it comes, your heating air unit is bigger better. Is bigger better. We go to some homes and folks say, hey, this thing didn't keep me, you know, cool last summer. Too much. I got a 310. I think I need a four ton. Well, a couple things. We're going to do a load analysis on the home to see if that's right for your home. What the equipment is currently in your home is right for your home. We're going to do things like measure square footage, measure windows, get window orientation, check the duct system, check the runs, see what size the duct system is for. All this is going to play into, you know, it doesn't, it doesn't matter if you have a 4 ton unit outside. If your duct system is only made for a 3 ton duct system, it could be a 410 unit. But guess what, it's only going to do a three ton duct system. Right? So it's kind of like I relate this, kind of relate this to a Gordon Nose. You know, you could put the garden hose on the fire hydrant and yeah, the fire hydrant lets out a lot of water, but the garden hose is only one size. So the water to get through the garden hose is going to be, it doesn't matter how much water the fire hydrant releases, it can only hold that much water in the garden hose. So you have to make sure everything sync together to work for your benefit. But does your home need that big of a unit or do other adjustments need to be made, like sealing your duct system? Maybe even as easy as adding insulation into the attic or into a room wherever the hot and cold spots are. Heating air is not. It's not only about the unit. The unit is the, the big factor, but it's also about the duct system. The unit, the duct system. And it's about the house. What does your house need? Have you upgraded from single pane to double pane windows? Do you not have a storm door on the front? Do you do you now have a carport or a shading around the front of the home like a porch. Have you added a porch to the room? So now those windows, they used to be on the south side, say your front door is facing south, but now the windows that were at once south facing, maybe now you built a porch or a permanent porch of it. So now it's considered a north facing window because it's always in the shade, it's always shaded. So it's not a south window anymore. So are things like that, have they been done to your home since the last time you got a system? Now most cases we're probably going to go back with what has been there, but we are going to take the time and verify that that is a system for your home. Because this is at least, this is a 10 year decision, right? This is the next 10 years parts and labor warranty where everything will install. 10 year decision. So we want to make sure we're getting it right and we don't have a mistake or something to happen that we didn't see happening. We're going to take a look, do a load analysis, figure out what needs, what needs to happen to bring this system up to code. We are going to get a permit. So we need to see what is going to happen to get this system back up the code. But it's not as simple as, hey, I want to go from a 3 ton to a 4 ton system. Why don't you give me what I want? My system isn't doing what I want when it's 100 degrees outside. It's not as simple and getting dry as you may think. A lot of factors come into play when sizing your system. And we can check all that out. And yeah, we, we send people out that do the measurements to ask the questions, to do load to verify you have the right system for your home. Because what tends to happen is it's going to short cycle. If you, you know, say your dust system is big enough to handle 410. So you go back, you need a three ton, but you go back with a four ton. You know, I need a four ton because when it's a hundred degrees outside, I want my home to be 68. I want the 4 ton. All right, say you get that 4 ton, but your home calls for a 3 ton. So what's gonna happen with that 4 ton system? It's now going to, y' all been in like bigger commercial buildings or maybe even the courthouse and you feel that kind of. It's cold it's cool, but it's kind of a clammy feeling because the unit is sized for that courtroom being full of people. It's not sized for 1, 2, 3, 4 people. So it's trying to cool when everyone is in that spot. So therefore the unit has to be sized for that happening. So what's going to happen eventually it's going to be oversized, so it's not going to be able to dehumidify. Now what that means at home for you is it's not going to dehumidify. It's also going to short what it calls short cycling, meaning if the thermostat sits any five and it pops up to 76, it turns on. It turns on for a very short time because it's going to take a very little cooling to get it down to 75. So it's going to do what they call short cycling. So it's going come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on. It's despite what you might think, it's actually better for the unit to run longer periods of time than the turn on, turn off, turn on, turn off. The skylight, same movement when you're driving in your car is much more efficient to be on the interstate than to be in stop and go traffic. So you want your system to be on the interstate and not in stop and go traffic. So stop and go traffic for your unit could be oversizing problem, could be a few things, but it could be oversizing problem. So replacing your system, it's very important to get that load done, load analysis done to make sure you have the right system for your application. Because again this is a 10 year decision and it's not something you want to take. Ivy. Okay, I hope you enjoyed this episode of the Derek Cole Podcast. Tell some people about this episode. It's on each of us really to spread the better ways to be healthier and more comfortable in our homes and workspaces. I'm asking you to be the dealer of positive and life changing messages in your circle of influence. Take a screenshot right now and share the screenshot and the link to this episode with three of your friends to today Share on social media Use the hashtag Healthy Home. That's Healthy Home. We are always giving away shout outs prizes to our community. If you would like to help me personally then please rate and review on Apple Podcasts. Give us some stars. Leave a review because that stuff actually does help and I read all the comments. So my last thought for today, please Remember you deserve better air at home and greater comfort at home. Don't settle for being uncomfortable for your heating air every single month. We are so thankful for having you here in our community and be sure to go deeper with us at simmons1hour.com. It.
