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Air Conditioning and How It All Works
What You Want to Know About Air Conditioning
An air conditioner, refrigerator and the radiator in your car or any other cooling device all basically do the same thing. They take the heat from the controlled area and deposit it somewhere else. In the case of your air conditioner it takes the heat from inside your home and deposits it outside of your home. It uses an refrigerant (freon) to accomplish this process. There are currently two types of refrigerants, R-22, which has been around for nearly 40 years and is used widely. But because of environmental concerns with the impact on the earth's ozone layer, global warming, the industry has developed a new refrigerant called R-410a. R-22 will be phased out over the next 10 years. You can purchase an air conditioning unit that uses R-22, and the R-22 refrigerant will no longer be manufactured after 2020.
How the Compressor and Inside Coil Work Together
Let us consider your home as having 2 radiators one inside or coil in the forced air unit and one outside as part of the Condenser. The condenser is to house the compressor, condenser coils and the fan. When your heat is removed from you home it will do it by allowing the heat to be absorbed into the refrigerant and moved outside to the condenser. The condenser will do as the name says, condense the refrigerant, thereby making it even hotter and then by using the fan (much like your car fan) reduce the temperature of the refrigerant by air flow as it moves through the outside condenser coil (much like the radiator in your car). The system will then return the refrigerant back to the indoor coil and there it will expand, making it much cooler. Then allowing the air to flow over the cool coil, thereby allowing the cooler air to flow into your home by way of your duct system. This process is constantly repeated while the compressor is working. The refrigerant must be kept contained inside a closed system and at the proper pressure for maximum efficiency.
An air conditioner, refrigerator and the radiator in your car or any other cooling device all basically do the same thing. They take the heat from the controlled area and deposit it somewhere else. In the case of your air conditioner it takes the heat from inside your home and deposits it outside of your home. It uses an refrigerant (freon) to accomplish this process. There are currently two types of refrigerants, R-22, which has been around for nearly 40 years and is used widely. But because of environmental concerns with the impact on the earth's ozone layer, global warming, the industry has developed a new refrigerant called R-410a. R-22 will be phased out over the next 10 years. You can purchase an air conditioning unit that uses R-22, and the R-22 refrigerant will no longer be manufactured after 2020.
How the Compressor and Inside Coil Work Together
Let us consider your home as having 2 radiators one inside or coil in the forced air unit and one outside as part of the Condenser. The condenser is to house the compressor, condenser coils and the fan. When your heat is removed from you home it will do it by allowing the heat to be absorbed into the refrigerant and moved outside to the condenser. The condenser will do as the name says, condense the refrigerant, thereby making it even hotter and then by using the fan (much like your car fan) reduce the temperature of the refrigerant by air flow as it moves through the outside condenser coil (much like the radiator in your car). The system will then return the refrigerant back to the indoor coil and there it will expand, making it much cooler. Then allowing the air to flow over the cool coil, thereby allowing the cooler air to flow into your home by way of your duct system. This process is constantly repeated while the compressor is working. The refrigerant must be kept contained inside a closed system and at the proper pressure for maximum efficiency.
Efficiency Ratings and Tons of Cooling
When it comes to the outdoor condenser unit the efficiency rating is usually in S.E.E.R.'s which stands for Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio. As the S.E.E.R. rating goes up then the lower the energy cost you will have. In today's market the lowest rating is a 13 S.E.E.R. unit and at the most efficient end it is a 21 S.E.E.R. unit. As each S.E.E.R. point goes up you will save from 7 to 10 per cent on your energy bill. When considering the average house hold spends about 45 percent of all the energy cost on heating or cooling their home, this could mean a significant saving on the monthly utility bill. Of course, there are variables to consider such as your home's insulation, size of the home upstairs and downstairs, comfortable settings of the thermostat, what direction does your home face, the size of your duct system and even down to what kind of thermostat is in the home. It is a single stage, two stage or variable speed blower. It is also important to match the cooling capacity of the condenser unit to the indoor coil attached to the furnace. The capacity to cool is measured in tons. Basically it is, how much heat can be removed in one hour. A one ton unit can remove 12,000 BTU's whereas a five ton unit can remove 60,000 BTU's in one hour. The bigger the house, the bigger the size of the unit required to cool the home. 1 1/2 ton to 5 ton units are used in most residential applications.
With some older air conditioners having only a S.E.E.R. rating of 6 to 10 it might make sense to upgrade the unit to a higher more efficient one. However, it does come at a cost. The higher the efficiency rating, the higher the cost of the unit to purchase. The larger the unit required to cool a home the higher the purchase cost. Contact LARSEN Heating and Air Conditioning for a free in home evaluation by one of our certified professionals.
With some older air conditioners having only a S.E.E.R. rating of 6 to 10 it might make sense to upgrade the unit to a higher more efficient one. However, it does come at a cost. The higher the efficiency rating, the higher the cost of the unit to purchase. The larger the unit required to cool a home the higher the purchase cost. Contact LARSEN Heating and Air Conditioning for a free in home evaluation by one of our certified professionals.
ac repair slc | air conditioning salt lake city | hvac installation salt lake city
air conditioning repair | home cooling | central air conditioning
air conditioning repair | home cooling | central air conditioning