Inner Workings
November 14, 2008
After Adjusting the Thermostat, How Do Air Conditioners Really Work?
Everyone knows how to adjust the thermostat of an air conditioner to make sure that their room or entire residence is cooled to the perfect temperature, but not many understand the intricate workings of the air conditioning unit and just how it cools the air that makes us so comfortable. Air conditioners are used to keep a house cool when the temperatures begin to rise outdoors and begin to become unbearable. Many people with asthma and other breathing related problems use air conditioning because it keeps the doors and windows of the house closed during the summer months. This means that pollen and other allergens won’t enter the home.
How Does it Work?
Basically an air conditioning unit is a refrigerator without the same size or girth. Think about it. An air conditioner is used to keep people cool and comfortable, just like a refrigerator is used to keep all of our perishable goods cool and comfortable. Air conditioners use the evaporation of Freon to cool the house. Here is the process of cooling air with an air conditioner.
-A compressor compresses the Freon, causing it to become hot, high-pressure gas.
-The hot gas runs through a series of coils to dissipate its heat and to condense into a liquid.
-The Freon liquid then runs through an expansion valve that helps to evaporate the liquid and become cold, Freon gas with low pressure.
-The cold gas then runs through another set of coils that allows the gas to absorb heat and cool down the air in a room or in an entire building.
This process is common for both central air conditioning units and window air conditioning units. The only difference is that a window air conditioning unit is relatively smaller, can only cool one room, and will take less time to finish that cooling process than a central air conditioning unit because of the size differential.
If there are any problems with your air conditioning unit you might see a rise in your electric bill each month. Problems with the air filter, compression valve and even the power saver option could put your electric bill in jeopardy. Always inspect the air conditioning unit and test it out before deciding to run it for a prolonged period of time before the hot and sticky months arrive, so that when they do arrive you will be prepared with a repaired unit or a new one altogether.
Any problems with the compression valve or the air filter can also cause the unit to not cool the air properly and you could just be pumping warm air into an already warm room instead of nice, refreshing, cool air. It can cost you close to $15 per day or more to use an air conditioner to cool your house, apartment or condominium. All the more reason to inspect the unit before use and make any necessary repairs so the bill doesn’t go sky high.
Inadequate AC
November 14, 2008
Common Household Complaints that May Stem from Inadequate Air Conditioning
Air conditioning is a luxury for most people within the United States and can mean the difference between a comfortable living situation and an uncomfortable one. People that have air conditioning may find it easier to breath during a heat wave, especially people with asthma, and more than likely find it easier to sleep at night because they aren’t hot and sticky. Air conditioning isn’t all its cracked up to be though. If the air conditioning unit you are using isn’t working the way it should be there will be problems and complaints about that unit.
Air Conditioning Filters and Allergies
Not all air conditioning filters used today are necessarily the best around. Most air filters used in air conditioning units help to filter out pollen and other pollutants and make the air it is using to cool your residence cleaner. Some of these filters though have trouble with dust accumulation and can help to spread dust around the home. This can essentially be a problem for most customers that have allergy problems. Most allergy sufferers have a problem with dust at some point in their lifetime and air conditioners can add to that. One of the biggest triggers of an asthma or allergy attack can be extended exposure to cold air. Never make the house or room you are in too cool or it can aid in an allergy or asthma attack.
Lack of Cooling in the Home
Even with an air conditioning unit there can still be problems with a lack of cooling throughout an apartment, condominium or an entire house. These problems are more than likely avoidable but some of them need to be addressed by an air conditioning technician. Most lack of cooling problems originate with blockage of the air vents throughout the house. This can be caused by furniture sitting in front of the vent, a pillow in front of the vent, everyday clutter in front of the vent or even the vent is closed. Make sure you open up all air vents when turning the air conditioning on and remove all clutter that could block them in order to properly cool the house. Another problem with a lack of cooling could be that the unit is simply too old and is not generating enough steam to cool the entire house. Some houses are so big that there needs to be two separate units; one to cool the downstairs and one to cool the upstairs.
Smells Caused by Air Conditioning
There can be different smells caused by air conditioning that can be avoided and some that can’t be avoided. For instance, if you own a shore house that only gets use during the summer months, turning your air conditioning on for the first time will create a musty smell throughout the house until the unit has been on for a while. The same can be said for the use of air conditioning in a motor vehicle. Other smells can be the accumulation of dust or even mold in the unit, if someone in the household smokes the smoke could get into the system and the system could be pumping it right back out into the house as well. All of these are common problems with air conditioning units.
