On Fri, 28 Jan 2005 09:38:15 -0700, Dick LeadWinger wrote:

On Fri, 28 Jan 2005 15:43:29 GMT, "Joseph Meehan"
wrote:

Dick wrote:
Is there a site on-line site where I can do a heating and cooling load
analysis on my home? I would like to determine the proper size of
heat pump to use. I found several sites where software could be
purchased, but I only need it once.

Personally considering the cost of an error, I would rather have someone
who knows their trade do the measuring and hopefully notice any unusual
situations to factor in, than to rely on myself. I would also want whoever
was going to install it to do the numbers for me. I would question anyone
who would install it without doing the numbers thenself.

I will have the person doing the installing do an analysis, but I
would like to have an idea of what it should come out to before I just
take their calculations at face value. In this area, there are only
two dealers that handle the type/brand of heat pump I want. Not much
choice.

For an approximation, you just multiply the surface area of all the
walls, doors, windows, ceilings, etc. by the relevent U values (1/R),
and multiply that by biggest temperature differential you're
going to want between the outside and the inside.

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu.../heatloss.html

You can probably expect the number that a pro comes up with to be
a bit off from that, but if it's a LOT different, I'd want to know
why. For finding the R values of various things, as well as
vast amounts of other useful and useless information, I cannot
recommend _Thomas J. Glover's Pocket Reference_ highly enough.

--Goedjn