Question

A window air conditioner unit is to be set up in a dwelling that has 12 KW of electric heat at 240 volts. The AC unit draws 8.5 amps at 240 volts. What's REQUIRED to meet the NEC needments for this service calculation?

Answer 1

The total load on the electrical system should not exceed 80% of its capacity according to the NEC requirements. In this case, the electric heat draws 50 amps at 240 volts, and the AC unit draws 8.5 amps. Therefore, the total load is 58.5 amps.

Step-by-step explanation:

The NEC (National Electrical Code) requirements for the service calculation in this scenario can be determined by evaluating the total load on the electrical system. The electric heat has a power of 12 kW at 240 volts, which can be calculated using the formula P = VI, where P is power in watts, V is voltage in volts, and I is current in amps. Therefore, the current drawn by the electric heat is I = P/V = 12,000/240 = 50 amps. In order to meet the NEC requirements, the total load on the electrical system should not exceed 80% of the capacity. The AC unit draws 8.5 amps at 240 volts, so the total load can be calculated as 50 + 8.5 = 58.5 amps.