08/18/2020
The necessary power of an air conditioning unit will depend, among other factors, on the size of the location, the number of people and devices connected in the environment (computers, lamps, oven, etc.).
Imagine that your car has air conditioning. It is natural to assume that it must have a greater cooling capacity if it was designed to transport 7 people instead of 2.
Likewise, if it was made for a country with a higher incidence of sunlight, it must be more powerful than the air conditioning in a country with less sunshine to obtain the same temperature.
All these factors are part of the so-called thermal load calculation, which is one of the competences of the mechanical engineer.
A poorly executed calculation and, consequently, an incorrect choice of the air conditioning unit, causes, besides discomfort, problems in the operation of the units.
In the case of undersizing (air conditioning with less capacity than necessary), there will be excessive stress on the system, reducing its useful life and increasing electrical consumption and the need for maintenance.
On the other hand, an oversizing (air conditioning with greater capacity than necessary) entails a higher purchase and installation cost than necessary, in addition to expenses with the long-term electricity bill.