What Are the Main Parts of Your Heating Air Conditioning Unit?

It may be worth investing in a new unit if your home’s air conditioner is a bit old and in need of repair. A residential HVAC expert can assist you in selecting the best option for your home.

Gas-powered air conditioners, also known as propane air conditioners, make use of natural gas to heat and condensers to run.

Evaporator

An Evaporator coil is the component of your air conditioner that cools your home. The evaporator coil is located in a box that is attached to or inside your gas furnace (if you have one) or in an air handler, in the event that you don’t have. The evaporator is the place where refrigerant transforms into a liquid and then absorbs heat from the air in your home.

The evaporator is comprised of one or more copper coils that are tightly packed. The refrigerant is in low pressure as it reaches the coils, making it easier to transfer heat.

A fan blows warm air from your home to the coil that is used to evaporate. This air is cooled when heat is removed from the evaporator. This reduces the temperature of the air inside. The cooled air then moves through the ductwork of your home to each room and circulates until it returns to the air conditioning system through return ducts.

The evaporator, unlike the compressor, needs to raise the boiling point of the refrigerant to a low temperature to allow for efficient air cooling. The evaporator uses its own fan in order to accomplish this final goal.

The evaporator’s metering device helps to ensure that the refrigerant maintains a constant level of liquid in it. The low-side float is designed to be open when there’s no liquid in the evaporator, and it closes when detects liquid entering the coils.

There are two types of evaporators, cased and noncased. A cased evaporator is the one you’ll likely to find in your home, since it’s enclosed within the metal casing of your air conditioning unit. Uncased evaporators resemble cases, but they don’t have an outer shell with protection.

Although both evaporators serve the same purpose, it’s crucial to choose a model that’s capable of meeting the specific requirements of your home. For instance, some models are better suited to more harsh working environments, whereas others are better suited to more moderate conditions. Consider how easy it is to clean and maintain your evaporator. This could help you save time, money and effort.

Condenser

The condenser is one of three primary parts of your home’s air conditioning system that helps keep it operating efficiently. The condenser is outside the house and is connected to the evaporator via refrigerant pipes. It has metal fins and fans that help remove heat from the refrigerant that is being transferred from the evaporator. The heat that is removed allows the refrigerant to reduce in temperature and then transform to a liquid state.

A compressor is connected to a condenser unit. It is used to pressurize low-pressure liquid refrigeration that is pumped out of the evaporator coil. The squeezing action of the compressor raises the temperature of the coolant, which then passes into the condenser coils to absorb heat that is not being released from the air around it. Once the cooling cycle is complete the refrigerant is pushed into the compressor to be pressurized prior to being pumped back to the evaporator coil.

Since the condenser is outdoors, it is vulnerable to the elements. Debris such as leaves or twigs, grass clippings, or even roofing shingles can cause damage to the condenser. The addition of a universal HVAC condenser cover to your heating and cooling system can help safeguard the equipment from accidental damage when it’s not in use.

It is also crucial to not shade the condenser. This can impede air flow and make the compressor work harder to cool your home. This can result in more expensive energy bills as well as a possible loss of refrigerant.

Regular maintenance will ensure that your HVAC system is running correctly. A professional service technician look over all of the major components of your system on a regular basis will aid in preventing major problems from occurring. A professional service team can also avoid problems by checking regularly the refrigerant level. By following these simple steps, you can help to prolong the lifespan of your heating and cooling system and lower your energy bills.

Compressor

The compressor is the core of your air conditioner. It pumps refrigerant through the system, which keeps everything cool. It’s like the blood in your body, as it circulates coolant back and forth between your condenser and evaporator coils. If the compressor fails and the evaporator fails, it will not be able to perform its job and your home will become uncomfortably hot.

There are many different types of HVAC compressors. Each one comes with its own advantages and drawbacks. A reciprocating compressor, as an example, has a piston moving upwards and downwards within a cylindrical. This movement produces a suction that draws in refrigerant. As the piston moves down it decreases the volume of gas, the discharge valve opens to expels the pressurized refrigerant into the condenser coil.

This type of compressor is also equipped with a clutch and a crankshaft that helps the piston compress the air. A Rotary compressor, on other side, has blades within the cylinder that help to compress the air. This type of compressor is extremely quiet, making it a popular choice for homes.

The HVAC compressors of both types are designed to raise temperature of the liquid as it is compressed. This results in the formation of a high-temperature, high pressure liquid. The heat naturally flows from high-temperature materials down to lower-temperature substances which is why the hot vapor moves to the evaporator and return to its liquid state.

While you can’t avoid the occasional problem with the compressor, you can prevent the majority of AC problems by staying on top of your maintenance schedule. This will ensure that your AC will last for a long time and provide you with peace of mind knowing that your home will remain comfortable. If you do encounter an issue with the compressor, your Griffith Energy Services technician can assist you in determining what repairs are the best for you.

Thermostat

The thermostat is your heating and cooling system’s brain, and it controls when and how the system turns on and off. It compared the temperature of the air to a pre-set desired level. The thermostat will send an indication to alter the temperature if it is off a few degrees. Most modern thermostats use the digital sensor, also known as the thermistor, which measures the temperature. The thermistor is composed of two different metals that expand at different rates when they get hot and cause them to bend in opposite directions. When the thermistor is at the temperature it was set to it sends a signal to the circuit board that your heating or AC should be turned on.

The touchscreens on newer models make it easy to program and operate. Many thermostats can be programmed to automatically cool and heat your home according to specific times. This saves you from having to manually set them every day. They also provide reports on energy usage so that you can find ways to cut costs.

If you have an old electromechanical model, it’s somewhat more complicated. It is comprised of a bimetallic strip that is bonded to a vial using mercury. When the temperature changes, it causes the mercury inside the vial to move in a way, interrupting or completing an electrical circuit. When the vial is tilted, it triggers the thermostat to activate the heating or cooling system.

You must regularly clean your thermostat to remove dust. You should also make sure that it isn’t sagging or unbalanced. In some cases, the thermostat may be having issues with its readings due to an evaporator coil that is dirty or a damaged thermistor. In this case you’ll need to contact an expert to fix the problem. If the issue is something else, like an unresponsive screen or a blank screen, you can try replacing the batteries or making sure that your breaker hasn’t been activated. This is a good illustration of how you can improve the efficiency of your HVAC system more efficient by learning about it and optimizing its use.