Sizing Your Mini Split

Summer is just around the corner and many of you are starting to think of an affordable, energy efficient way to cool your home, garage or restaurant. You might have narrowed down your search to the ductless mini splits and are still trying to understand what size mini splits you actually need. 

Let's help you answer that question. Whether you are looking to cool and heat one zone or multiple, look no further than understanding a few criteria of your space and you can determine how many BTUs you need for each indoor unit (or air handler). 

A few criteria will determine what size mini split you should purchase:

Square Footage - the most important factor is the square footage of the area you are looking to cool or heat. We recommend to double check the square footage of each room/zone before selecting your mini split. Once you have determined the square footage of each room, you can use this sizing guideline:

180 to 375 square feet = 9,000 BTU
376 to 500 square feet = 12,000 BTU
501 to 750 square feet = 18,000 BTU
751 to 1,000 square feet = 24,000 BTU
1,001 to 1,5000 square feet = 36,000 BTU

Ceiling Height - second to square footage, you should consider the ceiling height of each room. Since the square footage is calculated by the length and width of a room, it ignores the height of the room. Naturally, a higher ceiling increases the area to cool or heat and you'll need to size up in some cases. 

A standard ceiling height is 8 ft and if you have a ceiling height above this number, you should consider 'sizing' up. For example, if you had a room of 375 square feet and a ceiling height of 10 ft, we would advise you to size up for the 12,000 BTU unit. If you had a room of 200 square feet and a ceiling height of 8.5', we would advise that the 9,000 BTU unit would suffice.

Insulation - third on the list is insulation quality. If the space is poorly insulated, you should consider sizing up depending on the other factors (ceiling height and square footage). Poorly insulated rooms will not be able to keep the temperature cold or hot for long periods of no time, no matter what brand of mini split system you purchase.

Other factors to consider are the number of appliances you have in the room (which will generate heat), sun exposure and outside climate. 

When choosing a mini split, the biggest factor is the square footage. If you have significantly high ceiling height and/or low insulation, you should consider sizing up!