How Does Air Conditioning Work? By Amy Nutt At Isnare.com Ezine Articles

An air conditioner is a device which cools the indoor air by removing heat and sending it outside. The result is indoor space that has less heat making it cooler for everyone, including pets. Air conditioners can cool a room, a house, or a whole business.

Air conditioners contain chemical fluid called a refrigerant which can change from a gas to a liquid and back to a gas again. A refrigerant called Freon is normally used in air conditioners. This chemical is used to transfer heat from the air inside of a home to the outside air. Air conditioners have three important parts that include a compressor, a condenser, and an evaporator. The compressor and condenser are normally located on the outside part of the air conditioner while the evaporator is located on the inside. Motorized fans help to circulate the conditioned air, while thin metal fins allow heat to disperse rapidly.

The chemical fluid comes to the compressor as a cool low-pressure gas. The compressor jams the fluid so that molecules are pressed close together which causes the temperature and energy to increase. When the fluid leaves the compressor, it is a hot high pressure gas. This gas then flows into the condenser. The gas is cooled in the condenser. When it leaves the condenser, it is much cooler and is now in form of a liquid. The liquid goes into the evaporator. The liquid's pressure drops and it starts to dissolve into a gas.

In the evaporator, the liquid changes to gas and evaporates, removing heat from the air because the heat from the air is required to change the fluid into a gas. By the time the fluid leaves the evaporator, it is a cool low pressure gas. It then returns to the compressor to restart the process. A fan is attached to the evaporator which circulates the air inside the house to blow across the evaporator fins. Because hot air is lighter than cold air, it rises to the top. There is a vent that the hot air is drawn into the air conditioner and then travels down its ducts. It is the evaporation process that draws heat out of the surrounding room. The hot air cools the gas in the evaporator. As the heat is removed from the air, the air is cooled. It is then blown into the house through other ducts. The process is repeated until the room reaches the desired cooler temperature. The temperature is set using thermostat. When it reaches the set temperature, the air conditioner turns off. When the room starts to warm up again, the air conditioner turns back on and the process begins again.

Many people feel that air conditioners can drastically raise the electric bill. However, there are energy saving methods one can employ such as keeping windows and doors closed and keeping the shades drawn shut. This will help reduce any extra heat being added to the room.

During very hot days, air conditioners can be a life saver. The type of air conditioner one purchases will depend on what type of building it will be installed in and the size of the room or building.

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