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Convert BTU per hour to Tons of refrigeration

1 BTU per hour is 0.00008333 TR. One BTU per hour is exactly 0.0000833333333333 tons of refrigeration.

One BTU per hour is 8.3333 × 10^-5 tons of refrigeration. To convert BTU per hour to tons of refrigeration, multiply by 8.3333 × 10^-5; to go the other way, divide by 8.3333 × 10^-5 or multiply by 12000. The relation is exact but the figure is not: it is a rounding of a number that does not terminate, and it follows from NIST Special Publication 811. The rate US heating and air conditioning is sold in.

Factor checked against the defining standard · How we check

Tons of refrigeration
0.00008333 TR
BTU per hour × 8.3333 × 10^-5
1 * 0.00008330 TR

1 BTU per hour in every power unit

1 BTU per hour expressed in every power unit
UnitValueExact factor
horsepower0.0003930147789 hp× 0.000393014778922
metric horsepower0.0003984657624 PS× 0.000398465762413
watts0.2930710702 W× 0.293071070172
kilowatts0.0002930710702 kW× 0.000293071070172
milliwatts293.0710702 mW× 293.071070172
megawatts0.0000002930710702 MW× 0.000000293071070172
tons of refrigeration0.00008333333333 TR× 0.0000833333333333
BTU per hour (as entered)1 BTU/h—

Factors are entered by hand from NIST Special Publication 811 rather than derived from a units library, so the ones that terminate are exact rather than rounded.

How do you convert BTU per hour to tons of refrigeration? The converter and the working

  1. 1.Take the measurement in BTU per hour.
  2. 2.Multiply by 8.3333 × 10^-5 — that is how many tons of refrigeration fit in one BTU per hour.
  3. 3.To go back the other way, divide by 8.3333 × 10^-5, or multiply by 12000.

Worked example: 25 BTU per hour to tons of refrigeration

Formula
BTU/h × 8.3333 × 10^-5 = TR
Arithmetic
25 × 8.3333 × 10^-5 = 0.002083 TR
Answer
25 BTU/h = 0.002083 TR

The factor is rounded for display; the figure above is computed from the full value.

BTU per hour to tons of refrigeration conversion table

BTU per hour to tons of refrigeration conversion table
BTU per hourTons of refrigeration
1 BTU/h0.00008333 TR
2 BTU/h0.0001667 TR
3 BTU/h0.00025 TR
4 BTU/h0.0003333 TR
5 BTU/h0.0004167 TR
6 BTU/h0.0005 TR
7 BTU/h0.0005833 TR
8 BTU/h0.0006667 TR
9 BTU/h0.00075 TR
10 BTU/h0.0008333 TR
12 BTU/h0.001 TR
15 BTU/h0.00125 TR
20 BTU/h0.001667 TR
25 BTU/h0.002083 TR
50 BTU/h0.004167 TR
100 BTU/h0.01 TR
200 BTU/h0.02 TR
300 BTU/h0.02 TR
500 BTU/h0.04 TR
1000 BTU/h0.08 TR
2000 BTU/h0.17 TR
5000 BTU/h0.42 TR
10000 BTU/h0.83 TR

A ton of cooling is a ton of ice, melted over a day

One ton of refrigeration is exactly 12,000 BTU an hour — the rate at which a short ton of ice absorbs heat as it melts over 24 hours, which is how cooling was sold before it was made electrically. A three-ton domestic unit is 36,000 BTU/h or 10.5 kW of heat moved, and it has nothing to do with the weight of the equipment.

NIST Special Publication 811 — Guide for the Use of the International System of Units

What is a BTU per hour?

The rate US heating and air conditioning is sold in. A 12,000 BTU/h unit is one "ton" of cooling and about 3.5 kilowatts of heat moved.

What is a ton of refrigeration?

Exactly 12,000 BTU an hour — the rate at which a short ton of ice melts over a day, which is what air conditioning was measured against before it was made electrically. A three-ton domestic unit is 36,000 BTU/h, or 10.5 kW.

How many tons of refrigeration are in a BTU per hour?

One BTU per hour is 8.3333 × 10^-5 tons of refrigeration. Going the other way, one ton of refrigeration is 12000 BTU per hour. Both figures come from the same defined relation rather than from a measurement, which is why they are the same today as they were in 1959.

Every power unit here

The whole group — 8 units with their symbols and the size of each one in watts — is on the conversion index, along with every pair it makes. The table above already gives each of them relative to a BTU per hour.

Source: NIST Special Publication 811 — mechanical horsepower is 550 ft·lbf/s exactly

Cite this page

APA
Rule Calculator. (2026). Convert BTU per hour to tons of refrigeration. Rule Calculator. https://rulecalculators.com/convert/btu-per-hour-to-ton-of-refrigeration
MLA
"Convert BTU per hour to tons of refrigeration." Rule Calculator, August 16, 2026, https://rulecalculators.com/convert/btu-per-hour-to-ton-of-refrigeration.
Chicago
Rule Calculator. "Convert BTU per hour to tons of refrigeration." Rule Calculator. Last reviewed August 16, 2026. https://rulecalculators.com/convert/btu-per-hour-to-ton-of-refrigeration.

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Questions people actually ask

How many tons of refrigeration are in a BTU per hour?
8.3333 × 10^-5. Exactly 12,000 BTU an hour — the rate at which a short ton of ice melts over a day, which is what air conditioning was measured against before it was made electrically. A three-ton domestic unit is 36,000 BTU/h, or 10.5 kW.
How do I convert tons of refrigeration back to BTU per hour?
Divide by 8.3333 × 10^-5, or multiply by 12000 — they are the same operation.

Other power conversions

Tons of refrigeration to BTU per hour — the same conversion the other way.

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