How To Calculate Air Conditioner Power Usage for a Marine, Mobile, or Off-Grid Electrical System
21 April 2024 · 37 min · 18K views
What this video covers
A tutorial on calculating air conditioner power consumption for marine, mobile, and off-grid electrical systems, presented by Nate of EXPLORIST life with three HVAC professionals — William, Tucker, and Colby of Yarbrough and Sons Heating and Air Conditioning out of Blanchard, Oklahoma, a 35-year-old, 52-person residential and commercial firm.2:06
Tucker explains duty cycle: how long a unit runs per cycle to reach a set temperature, typically 30–60 minutes, governed by insulation level, outdoor ambient temperature, and thermostat setting.8:01 He instructs finding run load amps on the unit's data plate, then multiplying by operating voltage to get watts.8:40 Off-grid systems may run anywhere from 12V DC to 240V AC; mini-splits carry two separate data plates, one for the indoor unit and one for the outdoor.9:24 Colby argues against oversizing: an oversized unit short-cycles, fails to dehumidify, causes condensation, and accumulates compressor wear from frequent startups.16:26 Tucker's residential rule of thumb — divide conditioned square footage by 400 to approximate required tonnage — is offered as a starting point, with caveats for insulation quality.17:45 EPA regional zone data, searchable city by city, can estimate expected runtime percentages; 50% runtime per hour is suggested as a practical off-grid planning baseline.12:46
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