How Exactly Does an AC Work?

How Does Your AC Work and When Do You Need Service?

Summer temperatures can be hard, especially when your air conditioner isn’t working properly. When temperatures climb close to the 100’s, it can be unpleasant and frankly dangerous to live without an AC in your home.

While most people enjoy the work an air conditioner does, few people understand how their air conditioner can cool an entire home. In this article, HVAC techs give the public an explanation of how this standard appliance works in their home and also advice to understand when professional AC services are needed.

The Working Parts of an Air Conditioner

In the simplest terms, an air conditioner works by transferring heat energy from inside the house to outside and replacing this hot air with cooler air. An air conditioner is made up of many parts including:

• Refrigerant
• Blower
• Compressor
• Condenser Coil
• Expansion Valve
• Evaporator Coil

For most homeowners, the main components you’re concerned with is the thermostat, which allows you to control the temperature in your home, and the air vents that give you that cool air. However, all the parts above play a much more important role.

The Air Conditioning Process

The process works in a cycle. One vent inside your home pulls hot air from the house. This hot air is then pulled through the blower and over the evaporator coil which absorbs the heat and cools the air.

The refrigerant, a liquid cooling agent, works to keep the evaporator coil cold. This now cold air is then blown by a fan into ducts that distributes it throughout the house.

The condenser works to pressurize and heat up the refrigerant. The heat is moved through a condenser coil by a large condenser fan that pushes the heat outside. The refrigerant is then circulated back over an expansion valve which works to depressurize and cool the agent down in order to repeat the process.

Get Professional Help

While the overall workings of an air conditioner can be broken down into a simple explanation, trying to fix or install a system without an HVAC tradesman is almost always a bad idea.

If you purchased a quality AC unit, chances are it comes with a warranty. This warranty will ensure your system is fixed if repairs are needed within the warranty period.

Warranties almost always have certain conditions, which, if not followed, effectively break the warranty. Using an unlicensed professional, such as yourself, will void any warranty on the system.

You may think you know what you are doing when it comes to your home’s air conditioning system but these systems are delicate and require knowledge on many working air conditioning parts.

The chances you will actually break something in your effort to fix your system are high and will ultimately require you to hire a professional. Save yourself time and money now by calling an HVAC expert before you attempt the repairs yourself. You will be glad you did.

Who Can Help?

Honest Abe’s Home Services provides high-quality HVAC and plumbing services to residents of O’Fallon, IL. With flat-rate pricing, you will never be met with surprise charges at the end of the job. Their highly trained technicians will work tirelessly to inspect the issue and give you the most cost-effective solution.

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