HVAC Basics: What Does an AC Condenser Do?

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Most people take their HVAC system, especially their AC unit a little for granted. They assume they don’t need to know how it works, just that it actually does work. You want to walk into your home and feel the cool air.

Your AC unit works with the rest of your HVAC system to pull the hot air, push it through your AC unit to go through three processes, and make cool air. So, what role does the AC condenser play in making the cool air for your home?

Read on to learn more about how your AC unit works and relies on the AC condenser to help keep your home cool and comfortable.

ac condenser

Your HVAC System – AC condenser

Before you can understand how your AC condenser works, you need to understand some basic things about your HVAC system. Your HVAC system has three components:

  • AC evaporator
  • AC condenser
  • AC furnace

The evaporator and condenser work together as a system of coils. The compressor, inside your condenser, pressurizes gas inside the unit and connects it to the other parts through a series of pipes.

Three Systems at Work Cooling Your Home

No matter the size or type of AC unit, it must go through three basic processes to make cool air to pump back into your home. In order to understand the cooling and AC condenser, you need to understand these three processes too.

Evaporation

Evaporation is the first step in the cooling process. It starts when inside the home warm is gathered and sent over coils that contain low-pressure refrigerant. This refrigerant absorbs the heat out of the air blowing over the coils. Then it converts it into a high-pressure gas before it moves to the next step.

Compression

This gas is then transferred to an outside part of the unit. Once outside the gas is then converted back into a liquid state. Then the cooling continues by making more heat and pushing into the next stage.

Condensation

The condenser, located in the outside part of your unit, contains fans, a set of coils, and refrigerant lines.  The compressor sends the refrigerant from the compressor into the condenser and its set of coils.

Then the coils dissipate the heat from the refrigerant.

Role of AC Condenser Unit

So, what is an AC condenser’s role in cooling? Many people assume that because the condenser unit has a fan and it blows air, it’s the air that actually cools your home.

Actually, that isn’t exactly true. It’s responsible for pumping the refrigerant that is part of the cooling process.

If a home isn’t cooling well or even has high electric bills, it might be that the condenser is not pumping enough refrigerant to help create the necessary cool air.

HVAC Basics and Your AC Condenser

Your AC condenser plays an important role in the cooling process. You need it to complete the third step in the process of evaporation, compression, and condensation to make the cool air that eventually pumps into your home.

If your AC unit is making cool air the way it should, we can help. Contact us today and we’ll come out and take a look at your AC unit to get it working the way you need it to work.