What is a Ton

The other day around 4 in the afternoon I realized that my day had become defined by tons. I started my day, in New Braunfels, by hooking the trailer to my ¾-ton pick-up. I drove to the HVAC supply shop in San Antonio. We loaded a 10-ton Daikin air conditioner that weighed about ½-ton (1000 lbs.) onto the trailer. I then drove in the ¾-ton pick-up pulling the 10-ton air conditioner that weighed about ½-ton on the trailer to the job site. About an hour later the 26-ton truck crane arrived to remove the old 10-ton air conditioner from the roof and lift the new 10-ton air conditioner on to the roof. Both weighed about ½-ton of course. Then after having the old 10-ton air conditioner that weighed about ½-ton loaded onto the trailer by the 26-ton crane, I pulled the trailer loaded with the 10-ton air conditioner back to our shop, in New Braunfels, with the ¾-ton pick-up. But the day was not over. I got back in the ¾-ton pick-up and drove to Canyon Lake to give an estimate to replace a 2-ton air conditioner (Goodman / Liberty).

So, after such a confusing story about tons. What the heck is a ton and how can it be used in so many ways? Is a ton used to describe the weight of an air conditioner, the towing capacity of a pick-up, the lifting capacity of a crane, or the cooling capacity of an air conditioner? Well of course the answer is yes and each of these are not so different in their use.

Each use of the word “ton” is in some way related to 2000 pounds. An object such as an air conditioner that weighs ½-ton, weighs about 1000 pounds. A ¾-ton pick-up has a towing capacity of 1500 pounds. A 26-ton crane can lift 52000 pounds at its closest point of lift. These are all simple so far, but how can a 10-ton air conditioner only weigh 1000 pounds?

The “ton” in 10-ton air conditioner refers to its ice melting equivalent. This simply means that every 24-hours this air conditioner can remove the same amount of heat that it would take to melt 10-tons of ice. Another term you may have heard of is a BTU. A ton of air conditioning is about 288000  BTUs (British Thermal Units) per day or 12000 BTUs per hour (288000 / 24).

The “Rule of Thumb” for calculating the tonnage needed to keep your house comfortable was 400 square foot per ton of are conditioning. I say “was” because regulations and code have become tighter. Most municipalities require the use of approved software, such as Wrightsoft or  Elitesoft to calculate your cooling load. These calculations consider the amount and type of insulation, the windows, the type of ground under your house, etc. The 400 square foot per ton may get you close but don’t be shocked if your contractor tells you a different number.

Calculating the load of a walk-in freezer or cooler is a similar process to calculating a building load. Of course different temperatures are taken into consideration. In either case weather you need a refrigeration system or an air conditioner we can accurately calculate the tonnage you need. Weather you call us or someone else it is worth your time to call a qualified contractor to calculate your loads and design a system for you. Your family and your bank account will thank you.

Thank you for putting up with my crazy story but if you can’t have fun creating a blog then why bother. I do hope that it was at least informative and easy to understand.