I live in a small 2 bedroom house. Last summer, we ran two 5,000 BTU 120 V. Air conditioners and my electric bill ran about 160 a month, but the house stayed cool.
We are considering buying a 220 Volt Air conditioner. With our small size house, would a 220 volt really save us all that much on our electric bill, or should we save the money?
I'll keep checking this question, so if you need further information please let me know.
2007-02-26 11:36:09 · 4 answers · asked by i_just_wondering 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Engineering
No.
You pay for electricity as energy measured in KWH (Kilo Watt Hours).
A Joule is a Watt-Second so a KWH is 3,600,000 Joules.
The Wattage is calculated by multiplying the Voltage time the Amperage.
A 240 Volt air conditioner that consumed 5 Amps would consume exactly the same amount of energy as a 120 Volt air conditioner that consumed 10 Amps.
One advantage of two air conditioners is that they can be strategically placed where they can do the most good.
2007-02-26 13:25:41 · answer #1 · answered by J C 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I dont think it will matter that much, the 220V will used about the same amount of energy as 2 120 units. If the 120 Volt units are cooling, I dont think you would save the cost of buying a 220 volt unit. Well you might save a little but it would probably take a couple or three years to save as much as you paid for the 220 volt unit. also with the 120 volt units you can turn on one if you dont need both some days.
2007-02-26 21:24:21 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The answer is: that depends.
If the 2 120V AC units were on the same leg, a 10000 btu 220V AC would save you some money.
If the 2 120V AC units were on different legs, a 10000 btu 220V AC might save you some money. The 10000 btu AC will cool off the house faster, therefore be on less time.
There are questions that need to be answered.
What is the maximun outside temperature? What is "cool"?
Are you going to add fans to move the cold air around the house?
How good is the insulation of the house? Adding more insulation might be more productive.
2007-02-26 20:41:36 · answer #3 · answered by John S 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The large unit may be slightly more efficient due to size, you might get 5%.
But the typical unit cycles on and off according to the temp of the return air. It'll probably keep the room that it's in cool, and cycle off more, saving energy. But to keep other ooms cool youd have to get a fan to circulate the air. That'll take energy.
Probably best to keep two units in seperate areas
2007-02-26 23:05:21 · answer #4 · answered by mt_hopper 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋