5 Jobs You Didn’t Know Your HVAC Was Doing During Summer: It’s Not Just Cooling
During the summer months, when the mercury starts to rise, your HVAC system has to work extra hard to keep your home comfortable. During the hottest days of the year, your air conditioner needs to be a real workhorse, running all day and throughout the night.
But your HVAC is not just cooling during the summer. Actually, it’s doing a good deal more than that. Below are five other jobs your HVAC is doing on the hottest days of the year.
Circulating the Air
Your air conditioner cools the air by utilizing a compressor, an evaporator coil, and a condenser coil to absorb heat out of it. This heat energy is drawn into the refrigerant in the coils, reducing the temperature of the air to a comfortable level. But that’s just the first of your air conditioner’s many jobs. There would be no point in cooling the air if it didn’t also circulate it throughout the rest of the home.
In fact, circulating the air is a major part of how your HVAC keeps your house comfortable during the warmest parts of the year. With the outside temperature overly hot and the windows shut up, your home can become stuffy and uncomfortable even if the air has been cooled. Your HVAC is responsible for preventing this. By utilizing a blower fan, the air in your home is circulated through a series of ducts. This helps keep every room feeling pleasant, as well as reduces odors and expels toxins and pollutants.
Filtering the Air
Allergies are more closely associated with the springtime, but they can be just as severe during the summer months as pollens are released into the air. Hot weather also means more time spent indoors, enjoying the air conditioning. This additional time spent inside, however, also has the effect of exposing you to more dust and pet dander than normal. These combined factors can leave allergy sufferers miserable, while other pollutants in the air can also increase your risk of illness.
Fortunately, whenever your HVAC system is running, it’s not just cooling; it’s also filtering the air, capturing pet dander, pollen, and other allergens. This ensures the air that circulates throughout your home will be clean and pure, provided the filters are changed regularly. You should have your ducts cleaned and your filters replaced regularly by a certified HVAC professional.
Controlling Moisture
A hot day can be unpleasant enough, but it’s often the humidity that makes it unbearable. Too much moisture in the air can make it difficult for sweat to evaporate from the skin, making already hot temperatures seem much higher. Excessive humidity can also aggravate conditions such as asthma, as well as some skin ailments. It may also encourage the growth of mold, potentially damaging property as well as risking the health of a home’s occupants.
When the air conditioner is running, it also automatically dehumidifies the air. Importantly, to achieve the maximum benefit from this, it’s important that you have the right size air conditioner for your home. Many homes utilize HVAC systems that are too large, leading them to run for shorter periods of time and reducing their efficiency when it comes to removing moisture from the air. Contact Entek HVAC and ask for a certified professional to check if your home has the right-sized HVAC system to properly dehumidify the air.
Cooling During the Day and Warming at Night
In many parts of the country, the temperature can reach three digits during a hot summer day, while dropping to nearly freezing at night. That’s why, even during the heat of the summer, your HVAC system is doing more than simply chilling the air. At night, it may get so cold that you actually want to crank up the heater, even if it’s late August. Newer HVAC models have made this easier than ever because they allow you to control your home’s heating and cooling with ease. “Smart” HVAC systems allow you to set your heating and cooling to timers, as well as adjust them from a distance with your smartphone.
This advanced technology can be installed in many different parts of your home’s HVAC system. Everything from the heat pump to the vents can become “smart” technology and be controlled so precisely that you can always ensure your home is exactly as comfortable as you want it to be.
Newer HVAC models also don’t always separate heating and air conditioning into separate systems. Some, like hybrid heat pumps, move heat energy outside the home when cooling and simply move it back in when it’s time to begin heating.
Increasing Your Home’s Value
Keeping your HVAC system up-to-date will have another beneficial effect this summer, and it’s not cooling. HVAC systems that are in line with the latest technology and government standards may also boost the value of your home. New, smart HVAC systems are better for the environment and may earn tax credits for the homeowners. They’ll also save you a good deal of money on energy costs, which also translates to increased value for the home.
There are many variables at play when determining a home’s value, so it’s difficult to figure out exactly what effect your HVAC system has. However, new heating and air conditioning systems are speculated to boost the value of a home up to 10 percent. This is a significant amount of money, so if you have an advanced, upgraded HVAC system, you should advertise it when you’re attempting to sell your home.
If you’re interested in upgrading your home HVAC system and potentially saving some money on energy costs in the process, contact your local HVAC professional from Entek for a quote. They will be able to advise you regarding the latest technological upgrade that’s best for your home.
