Do Not Treat Your Home A/C Like Your Car A/C
Understanding Differences Between Home and Vehicle Air Conditioning System
As summer approaches here in the Akron and Canton area, residents are preparing for the summer heat by making sure their home air conditioning units are in good shape. By late June, with temperatures pushing up into the 80s, area air conditioners will be running steadily. Because of this, it’s important for area residents to understand that their home air conditioning system is not like their automobile cooling system. This may seem a simple concept on the surface, however to ensure maximum efficiency from your home cooling system, it’s important to note the distinctions.
How Home Air Conditioners Differ from Air Conditioners in Vehicles
Both operate on the same basic principle: Removing hot air from inside the home or vehicle and emitting it outside. Both systems are similar in design and function, and consists of:
A compressor. The compressor compresses the refrigerant housed in the air conditioning unit, increasing its temperature until it becomes vapor.
A condenser. Heated vapor is then routed into the condenser coil where it is cooled and the heat dissipates and escapes outside.
An evaporator. Indoor air that is passing through the system comes into contact with the evaporator coil which absorbs the heat.
Differences in Optimal Temperature Controls Between the Two Systems
Everyone knows the pain of having to start your vehicle in the winter to get it warm enough to drive. But it is rare for anyone to walk outside in the summer start their car, and let it cool off before driving away. Typically people simply start the vehicle, turn on the air and drive off immediately, knowing that the vehicle will cool off within a matter of minutes.
Now imagine following that same procedure in the home: You leave for work in the morning with the air conditioner off, and when you return in the evening you turn it back on expecting it to reach a comfortable temperature shortly thereafter. And when it doesn't? You get frustrated, believe it is not working and prepare to call a cooling specialist in the morning. But when you wake up in the morning, your house has finally reached the temperature you set it to. That is because it can take four to six hours for the home to cool down. You're unable to get your house as cool as your car in the matter of minutes for a couple of reasons.
- While a vehicle air conditioning system is made to cool a 6’ x 6’ space, the home air conditioning system is designed to cool an entire house, which could amount to several thousand square feet of living area.
- While people are away at work, the house has been heating during the warmest periods of the day. To expect to bring down the accumulated heat in a short period of time is impractical.
A Better Way to Cool Your Home
Being aware of the weather conditions during the time people are away from their home should guide them as to what temperature they need to set their thermostat to in order to ensure the home is at an ideal level of comfort when they return. If you see its supposed to get up to 85 degrees the next day, and you want it to be 70 degrees in the house, make sure to have that thermostat set there now. It's ok to bump it up a couple degrees while you are gone at work, but if you have a programmable thermostat set it to go to your desired temperature starting about an hour before you get home. But if you completely turn it off or turn it up too much and then kick it on when you get home, do not expect for it to achieve what you want it to for hours.
Need A/C Assistance? Contact Forquer Heating & Air Conditioning in Akron, OH
Akron and Canton area residents requiring assistance with their home air conditioning system should contact Forquer Heating & Air Conditioning today.
