Pro Power powering home A/C

[Samson16]

So, 240VAC at 20.7A = 4968W. The AC unit is easily the largest draw.

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[m_bt54]

I’ve been thinking about installing an easy start but am not 100% confident I’ll be able to wire it properly so I’m probably going to be best off waiting till the fall in the event something goes wrong

 

[Samson16]

That's what I did lol. I have a 2020 Carrier unit(Bryant actually) and the brand specific wiring diagram from the MicroAir site worked well for me.

 

[Davexxxx]

I have seen a bunch of videos and articles of the 7.2kwh powering homes with the furnace going. I have also seen numerous videos and articles about it power multiple a/c units on a RV. I was just curious if it was possible to power a home a/c unit.

There are so many answers to this question that start with "It depends" and very few that can be definitive except one.

If your AC is on a breaker higher than 30, the answer is no.

Everything else, "It depends".

There is probably a spec placard somewhere in your AC housing, or owner's manual, if you have one.

A soft start type device may or may not help with the PB but it won't hurt either way.

The age of the model may make a difference as well. Some newer models have softer starts, built in.

 

[JoeRedFly]

I have seen a bunch of videos and articles of the 7.2kwh powering homes with the furnace going. I have also seen numerous videos and articles about it power multiple a/c units on a RV. I was just curious if it was possible to power a home a/c unit.

Runs mine just fine, at least for the 10 mins I tested running the house. 3k sqft house with two A/C units in Florida. Started them up one at a time and they were fine running together with everything else, only had the water heater disabled. Largest is 4 or 4.5ton, not sure what the smaller unit is. I do not have soft starts on the units, but would add them if I had money to waste.

 

[Emmittfan22]

Runs mine just fine, at least for the 10 mins I tested running the house. 3k sqft house with two A/C units in Florida. Started them up one at a time and they were fine running together with everything else, only had the water heater disabled. Largest is 4 or 4.5ton, not sure what the smaller unit is. I do not have soft starts on the units, but would add them if I had money to waste.

Good to hear. Once I get around to adding the

 

[Samson16]

I have also seen numerous videos and articles about it power multiple a/c units on a RV.

I missed this. Multiple a/c units on an RV typically indicate 50A service. Technically there are two 30A/120V circuits available, but you'd have to get creative in order to utilize them for a 50A RV I believe.

 

[powerboatr]

I'd been a contractor of sorts for my parent's last home. I installed 2 4 ton mitsu minisplit systems (my calculations suggested 3 ton units were more than enough, but rocket scientist knows best). Combined I'd never seen them pulling more than 5kW in summer, they'd be in the 1.6 to 2.4kW range each in the upper 90s which always came with a healthy helping of humidity, (3500sqft)

Now a 3 ton conventional AC unit with a soft start may be able to run, but you'd really need to see its actual operating parameters. Not all units are created equal.

both of mine are mini splits

EDIT TYPO , i left out a "1"
one draws 12 amps of 220 and the other draws 13.5 amps of 220 at full blast start up
then as compressor figures out speed it drops to 2 and 3 respectively


these things are awesome
one is 18k and the other is 24k btu
my new 12,500 watt genny will run both
we are right at 3k square feet of cool ness

 

[HammaMan]

both of mine are mini splits
one draws 2 amps of 220 and the other draws 3.5 amps of 220 at full blast start up
then as compressor figures out speed it drops

these things are awesome
one is 18k and the other is 24k btu
my new 12,500 watt genny will run both
we are right at 3k square feet of cool ness

You've got nearly 4 tons of AC pulling peanuts. Great huh?

 

[powerboatr]

You've got nearly 4 tons of AC pulling peanuts. Great huh?

i had to edit i left out a "1"
yes they are really nice, they both idle along all day
the BIG one runs at 61 desired temps and this keeps the big garage at 72 when it gets to 100 outside.

its al about the R value those doors are sealed and r19 with catches that pull them in tight to the wall. they face directly west

what i really like about the mini splits, is they very very rarely do a HARD start that requires full current load.
even when we loose power they ramp up slow then bring on the fan speed
during snowmegedon a few years back they were putting out heat, while buried in snow

 

[HammaMan]

i had to edit i left out a "1"
yes they are really nice, they both idle along all day
the BIG one runs at 61 desired temps and this keeps the big garage at 72 when it gets to 100 outside.

its al about the R value those doors are sealed and r19 with catches that pull them in tight to the wall. they face directly west

what i really like about the mini splits, is they very very rarely do a HARD start that requires full current load.
even when we loose power they ramp up slow then bring on the fan speed
during snowmegedon a few years back they were putting out heat, while buried in snow

We did spray foam on the house and it was really air tight. Couldn't believe how not only the efficiency of it as a thermal insulation was, but also as a sound deadener. The fact it's also a polyurethane glue that adds another layer of 'structure' to the structure is also incredible. The house is so air tight that the wood burning stove couldn't be lit with the dryer or any other exterior blowing fan running without smoke refusing to go up the chimney. Only after it was a well established fire could the stove door be opened to add wood / etc.

 

[powerboatr]

We did spray foam on the house and it was really air tight. Couldn't believe how not only the efficiency of it as a thermal insulation was, but also as a sound deadener. The fact it's also a polyurethane glue that adds another layer of 'structure' to the structure is also incredible. The house is so air tight that the wood burning stove couldn't be lit with the dryer or any other exterior blowing fan running without smoke refusing to go up the chimney. Only after it was a well established fire could the stove door be opened to add wood / etc.

so its not just me, a sealed up house is nice.... but no air did present a few issues as well
we foamed the "big house" the apartment behind the rv garage
dryer would surge because it could not pull enough air out
had to add a secondary vent in the bathroom upstairs with a damper that opened with the draw of the dryer. or you would loose a finger in the door if you weren't careful
now with the NO vent all in one washer dryer. ..no more draft issues

foam is great its very very quiet, then we backed up the outer walls and lowered ceilings with more batts and or blown in insulation. outer walls are right at 10 inches thick.

rv gargage is getting another round soon,
once it gets to 105 outside , it starts creeping in around the back door and mud room.
when we closed in the front, the steel guys told us no way to use a residential or insulated commercial door, it had to be those roll up non insulated leaky doors
we had less than 11 inches of head room at a main beam that could not be moved, so an engineer solved it and BOOM we have nice doors
so i refused and found a place that built one off doors and guaranteed a residential look and superb insulation .. they achieved it
out side skins temps i have seen are over 130f and inside skin stays right at 65-68
pricey ...but worth it x1000

our average daily cost to operate the whole house in summer is $9.00
winter is a bit less at 6

 

[codyj24]

I have a 2022 Powerboost and ended up buying a Transfer Switch panel from Reliance Controls, a 30 or 40' extension cord and the power inlet box and misc parts. I was going to wire up my house - but things changed personally - so I have all these items sitting in my garage if anyone is looking to purchase for their homes.
thx

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