Your heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system consists of several moving parts. You may have heard of some of them, while others may be a mystery. Understanding the mechanisms of your most critical HVAC components will help you identify when your HVAC Delaware system has a problem. Below are the crucial components of your system and how they operate.
Visible Components of HVAC Systems
These are the HVAC parts you may be most familiar with. They are partially visible parts built into the building and connect to the HVAC system. These components carry the heated or cooled air between the system and the building’s rooms and hallways.
Thermostat
The thermostat is your system’s most visible component, wired directly to your HVAC Delware system. It has temperature sensors that turn on the heater or air conditioner based on the conditions in the building, room, or zone the unit covers. You can install a programmable thermostat that lets you set its temperatures in advance or control it manually.
Additionally, you can use your thermostat to make your system more energy efficient. When you leave the building, lower the temperature by only a few degrees in winter and raise it a couple of degrees in summer. This trick will reduce the energy your HVAC system consumes when not in use. You can use remote thermostat controls to adjust the temperature to its standard settings before you return.
HVAC Ductwork
Your building’s ductwork is the system of ducts connecting back to your HVAC unit or system. It carries the warm or cool air from the system to the rest of the building. While most ducts contain steel, they frequently have other materials, including fabric, fiberglass, polyurethane, and aluminum.
Temperature-safe Registers, Grilles, and Diffusers
Registers, grilles, and diffusers are where the ductwork system meets a room or hallway. They can be round, square, or rectangular, covered with angled slats that can be closed manually or controlled to change the airflow to a particular room. Registers, grilles, and diffusers contain temperature-safe metal, wood, or plastic.
Hidden Components of HVAC Systems
While these HVAC Delaware system components are not visible, they are critical for heating and cooling air within the system. Without these parts, the ducts and vents have nothing to carry to the rest of the building.
Condenser Coil and Compressor
The condenser coil and compressor are the parts of your air conditioner or heat pump that move and condense refrigerant to cool the building and release heat outside. A fan blows over the coil while the compressor pumps the refrigerant to release the captured heat. After the refrigerant is cooled and condensed, it travels through the refrigerant lines. These components are typically part of your HVAC Delaware system’s condensing unit, usually located outside.
You can maintain your condensing unit by annually clearing debris away from it and cleaning it off with a hose, or more often if necessary.
Refrigerant Lines
Refrigerant lines are copper tubes that carry refrigerant between the condensing unit and the evaporator coil. These lines transfer superheated refrigerant vapor to the condensing unit, which subcools and converts the vapor to liquid form before sending it to the evaporator. The liquid refrigerant travels through a metering device installed between the refrigerant lines and the evaporator coil. This metering device lowers the pressure and temperature of the refrigerant, allowing it to flow into the coil for heat absorption.
Evaporator Coil
The evaporator coil is within your HVAC system’s indoor air handler. It receives liquid refrigerant from the condenser, using warm air in the space to turn the refrigerant back into a gas. This process restarts the cooling cycle, allowing the refrigerant lines to carry the gas back to the condenser to be cooled and liquefied.
Monitor your evaporator coil for mold growth, dust, dirt buildup, and ice caused by low pressures/temperatures. These issues could be an indicator of various system issues. Improper HVAC maintenance Delaware techniques can lead to breakdowns and expensive repairs.
Heat Exchanger
This component is present with fossil fuel-burning heaters. The unit will burn the fuel and reject the combustion products through the heat exchanger. The heat exchanger is an exhaust pipe reshaped to fit within the heater casing. The cool air from space travels across it, heated by contacting the hot metal tubing. This tubing faces consistent stress from the acidic exhaust gases inside and the rapid heating and cooling of the metal.
Ensure your heat exchanger passes annual inspections. Failing to do so could lead to carbon monoxide leaks, causing headaches, nausea, and even death. Installing carbon monoxide detectors around your office is recommended since carbon monoxide can’t be seen or smelled.
Combustion Chamber
The combustion chamber is the part of the furnace that combines oxygen with fuel. The fuel type depends on what kind of furnace or heating system you have. For instance, gas furnaces use gas fuel. Then, a pilot light, glow plug, or sparker ignites the fuel and oxygen mixture to create a controlled fire that travels through the heat exchanger.
A pilot light is a small flame that constantly burns fuel in the combustion chamber to light the main flame on a call for heat. It is more common in older heating systems. If it goes out, you may smell gas and need to relight it. Glow plugs and sparkers, however, are electric ignition systems that light automatically. They are common in newer systems.
If you have an older heating system with a pilot leak, monitor it carefully. If the pilot light goes out, it will likely release harmful gas into your building, causing safety risks.
Maintain Your HVAC Delaware Components With Service Unlimited, Inc.
At Service Unlimited, Inc., we provide preventive HVAC maintenance that will keep your system’s components in good working order. If you have any questions about our maintenance services, contact us today. We want to make sure your system produces conditioned air safely and efficiently.
