ypical HVAC Rules of Thumb

Note: Do not assume these values to be LAWS. They are

only typical values, which SHOULD BE VERIFIED for each
application. Also, if youre interested in learning even more,
heres a free download for you: Standardized EMCS Energy
Savings Calculations (20.3MB PDF)

General Information
Air Movement 6 ACH
1 CFM/ft2
Ventilation Rate 5 CFM/person
Fan Energy 1000-1500 CFM/hp
Electric Motors .8-.85 kW/hp
Lighting 2-4 watts/ft2
Chiller Size 300-400 ft2/ton
Ton 12,000 BTU/ton
Chilled Water 2.4 GPM/ton (10 rise)
Condenser Water 3 GPM/ton (10 rise)
Chiller Input .7-.8 kW/ton
Chillers & Pumps & Towers .9-1.0 kW/ton
Absorbers 18 lbs steam/ton
Boiler Horsepower 33,479 BTU/hr = 9.8 kW
Rebuilt Systems Design 55F supply air
30-40 rise reheat coils
Dual Duct & Multizone Design 55 cold deck
70-105 hot deck with ODA Reset Schedule
VAV 55F cooling
10% box leakage flow
40-50% minimum fan volume
People Load 450 BTU/person/hr
People Density Office 140 ft2/person
Theater 14 ft2/person
Heat Transmission See ASHRAE Handbook of Fundamentals
Glass 1 BTU/ft2/F
Good Wall 0.1 BTU/ft2/F
Masonry Wall 0.15-0.3 BTU/ft2/F
Thin Poor Wall 0.25-0.5 BTU/ft2/F
Overall Building 0.15-0.5 BTU/ft2/F
Infiltration 0.5-1.5 ACH without Building Pressurization