ZoneBtuBTU per head, per room, per orientation — not one number for the house.

What size mini split does a 200 sq ft bedroom in Chattanooga, TN need?

200 ft² bedroom in Chattanooga, TN
6,000BTU/hr
4,858 BTU/hr of load at 24.3 BTU/ft² — the figure for 2,114 cooling degree days
200 ft² bedroom in Chattanooga, TN6,000 BTU/hrHead size to buy4,858 BTU/hrCalculated load4,000 BTU/hrWhat the 20 BTU/f…
Head size to buy6,000BTU/hr
Calculated load200 ft² × 24.3 BTU/ft²4,858BTU/hr
BTU per square foot hereinterpolated from Chattanooga's 2,114 cooling degree days24.3BTU/ft²
What the 20 BTU/ft² rule givesthis room needs 21% more than the rule says4,000BTU/hr
Summer design temperature95°F
Winter design temperaturea mini split heats too — this is the number that decides whether it can carry the room alone20°F
Summer day–night swinga fairly dry climate20°F
Days at or above 90°F57days/yr
Oversize from the size stepa big step — read the note24%

Notes

  • The "20 BTU per square foot" rule is a Midwest number. Chattanooga runs 2,114 cooling degree days, which works out to 24.3 BTU/ft² — so for this bedroom the rule is 21% short. A single national figure has to be wrong somewhere, and this is where.
  • Bedroom: the room where oversizing hurts most — quiet, low load, long runtimes wanted.
  • 6,000 BTU/hr is 24% above the load, and the gap between head sizes is wide — this is already the smallest head. In a single room that matters more than it would on a central system: there are no other rooms to absorb the excess capacity. If the room is well insulated and shaded, the smaller head is usually the better buy, and modern inverter compressors modulate down far better than they modulate up.
  • Chattanooga is fairly dry — summer nights stay within 20°F of the day's high, the signature of humid air. A meaningful share of this head's work is removing moisture, and it only removes moisture while it is running. This is the climate where an oversized head produces a room that reads cold and feels clammy.
  • Do not forget the winter side. Chattanooga designs to 20°F. A cold-climate rated head will hold most of its capacity there, but a standard one will not — ask for the capacity at 20°F in writing.
  • Where these numbers come from. Lovell Field, 10 km from downtown Chattanooga, daily records 2015–2024. Design temperatures are calibrated against published ASHRAE values at eight airports and land within about 2°F of them.

The short answer

A 200 square foot bedroom in Chattanooga, TN needs a head of about 6,000 BTU per hour. The calculated load is 4,858 BTU/hr.

Where that number comes from

Chattanooga, TN runs 2,114 cooling degree days a year, which puts the room at 24.3 BTU per square foot rather than the 20 BTU/ft² the generic charts use. Applied to this room the rule gives 4,000 BTU/hr.

The winter half of the question

Chattanooga, TN designs to 20°F. A mini split is a heat pump, and its heating capacity falls as the outdoor temperature drops — the nameplate is measured at 47°F, not at the temperature you actually need it.

Sizing a single room is not sizing a house

There is no other room to absorb a mistake. An oversized head short-cycles, never runs long enough to dehumidify, and leaves the room cold and damp.

Nearby sizes

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