Dry heat and runtime in Houma
1813 cooling degree days at only 0% humidity with 42 days above 90F, so the load is running hours, sun and dust rather than dehumidification; the median home dates from 1973, and ductwork and insulation of that era rarely keep up with a modern system, so the ducts are worth looking at before you replace.
1813 cooling degree days at only 0% humidity with 42 days above 90F, so the load is running hours, sun and dust rather than dehumidification
the median home dates from 1973, and ductwork and insulation of that era rarely keep up with a modern system, so the ducts are worth looking at before you replace
Houma runs about 1813 cooling degree days a year, which is a direct proxy for how many hours the compressor will actually turn - and compressors wear out by running hours, not by calendar years.
Why this changes what you should buy
In a dry climate the machine is doing almost pure sensible cooling, so the limiting factors move outdoors: how hot the condenser gets, how much dust is packed into its fins, and how many hours a year it runs. Those are maintenance and placement questions more than equipment questions.
Houma gets roughly 42 days a year above 32 Celsius, and those are the days a system that is even slightly undersized will never catch up.
What to ask for, in order
- A Manual J load calculation, not a square-footage rule of thumb
- Shade or at least afternoon relief for the outdoor unit, without blocking airflow
- A maintenance interval that includes washing the condenser coil, which fills fast here
- Duct inspection before sizing, because attic ducts in this climate leak into very hot air
The median home in Houma dates from 1973, which is a good guide to what the ductwork looks like behind the walls.
Prices in nearby cities
Alexandria · Kenner · Lafayette · Lake Charles · Shreveport · Biloxi · Mobile · Brandon · Pensacola · Baytown · League City · Atascocita