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.
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