An air conditioner simply absorbs heat from the air, just like a sponge absorbs water.
The more heat your air conditioning sponge absorbs, the cooler the resulting air in our home.
Just like a normal sponge, there is only so much it can absorb. Once a sponge becomes full,
it needs to be squeezed out in order to pick up more water. The same thing occurs with our
air conditioning sponge. As it picks up heat, it is taken to a "squeezer", where the heat
is released. Once released, the sponge is returned back to the house to absorb more heat.
The cycle continues until you are cool.
That's it!
Ok, so I know we don't want to be technical, but what exactly are the sponge and the
squeezer? You will know the sponge as Freon and the squeezer as the Compressor (the loud,
outdoor square-looking thing). There are obviously more components to an air conditioner
and it is a little more complicated than this, but remember we are trying to be non-technical.
Freon, or refrigerant, circulates back and forth between the house and the compressor
through a coil. The air in the house is blown over this coil and the heat is transferred
to and absorbed by the refrigerant. The refrigerant then travels through the coil to the
compressor where the heat is released and the process continues until your thermostat
determines that you have taken enough heat out of the house.
Although you have heard of Freon, Freon is no longer used today. The most popular
refrigerant used today is called R-22. However, similar to the fate of Freon the
government is phasing out the use of this refrigerant and it will soon be replaced by
Puron - or R410A. More about this is and what you might need to do about it in a future article.
We will be using this sponge analogy in future articles when discussing ways to improve
your air conditioner or how the rest of the home can impact your air conditioner's performance.
I hope you enjoyed this article. Please feel free to email your comments to
brian@acpatriot.com. Please remember to forward
this newsletter to friends, family and neighbors.
Regards,
Brian Starzec
A/C Patriot
Next Issue - What should I be doing before it gets hot?
In our next issue we will discuss some things you should do between now and the start of summer.
Have a great weekend!
