BTU stands for British Thermal Units. This is a traditional unit of thermal Energy (heat) and is universally used. Energy is also represented by Joules (J). Therefore 1 BTU is equal to 1055 Joules.

BTU and air conditioners

Air conditioning refers to the process of altering the condition of the surrounding air in term so f heat and moisture. Air conditioners do this by removing or adding heat to the environment, in accordance with the user’s needs.

BTU in terms of air conditioner means how many units of energy (thermal heat) does an AC use to produce or remove (increase or decrease) heat in the air.

Why should you know about BTU? 

It may seem like knowing in-depth about BTU is insignificant for people who are not generally interested in technicalities of AC. But that may not be true, and you are probably underestimating the significance of BTU in AC.

BTU appears in most air conditioning products, whether for heating purposes or cooling. When you’re out to buy one, your knowledge about BTU will come in handy to assist you in making the correct decision. Air conditioners are often costly and not a small investment; you need to know all about them and choose wisely. This wise decision will benefit you for a long time, and also satisfy all your AC needs.

There are many other units and terms used to describe an AC’s working and compatibility.  Focusing only on them and not knowing about BTU will lead you to poorer decisions. High BTU means higher power usage. But that does not mean efficient working. An over-powered AC in a small room will use a lot of energy, and will hence lead to energy wastages. Which is also why you need to know about BTU and how to use it to make the right choice.

How do you find out how many BTU are there?

BTU’s are mentioned on every air conditioning products’ back. Or you can simply ask from the seller!

How do you know what is the most suitable BTU of AC?

Factors that influence the compatibility of an AC’s BTU include

• Size of the room. The larger the room, the greater the energy needed to cool or heat it.
• Are there any open spaces in the room? Some rooms connect with other areas without doors; such rooms may need higher energy AC.
• How many windows are there in the room and their size is also important. The more the windows, the higher the BTU rating/capacity.
• Insulation
• Are there any other heat-generating appliances in the room?
• Shading. If the room is highly shaded, there is expected to be more heat.
• Home electrical setting and system.

How to measure the size of the room?

The basic way or finding the size of your room is to multiply room’s length, with its and width and height. But always to remember to keep other factors in mind as well!

Here is a chart to help you in deciding the most compatible BTU rating with your room size.

BTU Chart – Based On Room Size

Other units that you may get confused with

• EER

Stand for Energy Efficiency Ratio. This ratio is used to measure the efficiency of an Air Conditioner and is not an indicator of power/energy. The higher the EER, the better. The EER of new AC’s is mentioned on the product. EER is calculated by dividing British thermal units with Watts. Knowing about the EER ratings can save many long-term costs.

• Joules

Joules or (J) is an SI unit for energy named after James Prescott Joules. The unit measures the work is done or energy used in producing one unit of power.

• Amps

Ampere or Amps is a unit of electrical flow through a conductor. Air conditioners generally have a larger Ampere rating than other appliances. If the flow of electricity is too high, it can damage your AC. If it’s too low, then your AC may not work efficiently.

• Watts

Is a unit for power, named after James Watt. It can be calculated by multiplying ampere with voltage. Watts are also defined as the rate at which energy is transferred (Joules per second). An AC’s indoor unit consumes lesser watts than the outdoor unit. BTUs measure energy and not power, which is why they cannot be directly converted to watts. BTU per hour can be equal to watts.

• Tons

When speaking of tons in terms of Air conditioners, we often confuse it with the weight of the product. However, tons of AC has nothing to do with its weight. They rather refer to the amount of heat an AC can remove in an hour. Before AC’s were invented, people used to cool their homes and other areas with ice. This is from where the term “ton” originated. To find the right amount of tons for your room, you need to find the size of your room (just like you do for BTU!).  One ton of AC equals to 12,000 BTUs in an hour.

Once you’ve found yourself the most suitable AC, please don’t forget to remain environmentally friendly

You must be wondering how air conditioner possibly harms the environment. Well, all things have their own pros and cons. So do air conditioners.

• Outdoor units leave harmful gases in the air
• AC’s may bring in germs from outside, to inside
• Electricity wastage

With extreme weathers, we do not have many options but be dependent on air conditioners, and that is absolutely alright if we are doing it with responsibility. Here are some ways for you to remain environmentally friendly.

• Saving electricity. As discussed earlier, air conditioners use more power than other everyday home appliances. Setting the thermostat too low wouldn’t mean that it would make the air cooler, it will just take more energy and power to get to the desired level of cool. Therefore, setting the thermostat at a medium level should consume lesser power and still give you the same cool.
• Get regular maintenance. Getting regular maintenance for you AC is essential. Clean its filters out, as they may be filled with dust and other tiny blockages.
• Useless heat-generating lights.
• Use fans. They might not cool the air as much, but they certainly do make up for a good backup. You can turn off the AC when the desired temperature is reached and use fans to keep it cool for another while.

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