Newsletter
Contents: How To Maintain Your Central Cooling System | Grilled Bacon-Onion Appetizers | Wireless Zone System | Buzz Words for the Cooling Season | When is the Time to Upgrade to a Heat Pump?
How To Maintain Your Central Cooling System
Your split system cooling unit is made up of basically two components. An
Since evaporation occurs when heat is absorbed, and condensation occurs when heat is released, air conditioners are designed to use a compressor. The compressor causes pressure changes between two compartments, the evaporator coil and the condenser, and actively pumps refrigerant around. Refrigerant is pumped into the cooled compartment (the evaporator coil), where the low pressure and low temperature cause the refrigerant to evaporate into a vapor, taking heat with it. In the other compartment (the condenser), the refrigerant vapor is compressed and forced through another heat exchange coil, condensing into a liquid, rejecting the heat previously absorbed from the cooled space.
The EVAPORATOR COIL (cold side) is located inside in the furnace or air handler. The hot air inside the home flows to the furnace through the return air duct. The air is moved by the blower across the cooled evaporator coil in the plenum and the cooled air is then delivered through the ducts to cool the house.
The CONDENSING UNIT (hot side) is located outside. It consists of a compressor (a pump to move the refrigerant through the system) and a long spiral coil shaped like a cylinder. Inside the coil is a fan to blow the air through the coil and deliver the absorbed heat outside of the home.
Dirt is the biggest enemy of you home's cooling system. It restricts air flow across the coils and it can drastically lower the efficiency of the unit. This will also cause the unit to work harder resulting in extreme wear on the components. Not to mention it will reduce the comfort level in your home. Some of the maintenance YOU can do.
Let's start with the EVAPORATOR COIL inside your furnace. Make sure the power is off to the system, both outside unit and inside unit. If the evaporator coil is located in a sealed metal box do not attempt to open it, a professional should be called in to clean it.
1. Remove the screws from the access plate or door on the plenum, lift off the plate or door.
2. Clean the entire underside of the evaporator coil with a stiff brush. A large hand mirror will help you see what you are doing. If you can't reach all the way back to clean the entire area, slide the evaporator coil out a little. Evaporator coils can be slid out even if it has rigid pipes connected to it, but be careful not to bend the pipes. RESULTS: Allows proper air flow across coils to cool air and distributes proper volume of air to ducts.
3. Clean the tray below the evaporator coil. This tray carries condensation away from the evaporator coil and drains to your floor drain or to a condensate pump through a rubber hose. Pour 1 tablespoon of household bleach into the drain pan fitting to prevent fungus growth. Remove the drain line and run water through it to make sure there is not any dirt blocking the drain hose. In extremely humid weather, check the pan and drain hose every other day to make sure it is not clogged. RESULTS: allows proper draining of condensation and if clogged water will run down sides of your furnace.
4. Put front plate back on plenum and seal with duct tape if needed.
Now let's clean the CONDENSING UNIT outside. Make sure the power is off to the system, both outside unit and inside unit.
1. Cut down any grass, weeds, or vines that have grown around the condensing unit, they could be obstructing air flow.
2. Remove the top of the unit. Take a garden hose with a nozzle that has a fan spray function on it. Wash the unit with water from the inside out at a 45 degree angle. Avoid a hard stream of water for it will bend the aluminum fins if too much pressure is applied. Clean until the water runs clear (this step can be time consuming). Put the top back on. RESULTS: allows proper air flow to remove the heat from the coils.
3. If you have a protective grill around your unit-remove it to clean the fins. Clean with a soft brush to avoid bending the fins. Wash the unit with water at a 45 degree angle from top to bottom with a nozzle that has a fan spray, once again avoid a hard stream of water for it will bend the aluminum fins if too much pressure is applied. If fins are bent from hail damage or being bumped into for any reason straighten them with a fin comb. This tool can be purchased from any appliance store. Put the protective cover back on. NOTE: In the Omaha area cottonwood plugs up condensing units many times during the cooling season. You may need to clean the outside unit more than once a year. RESULTS: allows proper air flow to remove heat from the coils.
4. Examine the refrigerant line going from the condensing unit into the house. If the insulation is worn or damaged, replace with insulation of the same type. RESULTS: increase the efficiency of the unit.
5. If you suspect your unit does not have the proper amount of refrigerant charge, call a professional-this is something you can not do yourself.
6. Let the unit dry for 20-30 minutes, then turn the power back on.
Two other very important things to look for:
1. Replace furnace filters on a regular basis. RESULTS: proper air flow.
2. Move furniture away from all return and supply registers. RESULTS: proper air flow. If you haven't guessed proper air flow is the biggest key to a healthy and happy home and cooling system.
Grilled Bacon-Onion Appetizers
Anne's favorite grilling treat
PREP: 20 min. + marinating
GRILL: 10 min.
- 2 large sweet onions
- 12 hickory-smoked bacon strips
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 2 tablespoons barbecue sauce
Cut each onion into 12 wedges. Cut bacon strips in half widthwise; wrap a piece of bacon around each onion wedge and secure with toothpicks. Place in an ungreased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. dish.
Combine the brown sugar, vinegar, molasses and barbecue sauce; pour 1/2 cup over onions. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour, turning once. Cover and refrigerate remaining marinade for basting.
Drain and discard marinade.
Grill appetizers, covered, over medium heat for 10-15 minutes, turning and basting frequently with reserved marinade.
Yield: 2 dozen
Do you have one area of your home or business that is always cold and another that is hot?? You constantly adjust the thermostat or add a fan or a heater to the area. You don't have to replace your existing furnace. Honeywell has released a new product. A WIRELESS ZONING SYSTEM.
HOW IT WORKS: A Honeywell zoning panel is the heart of the system, installed on your furnace. Wireless thermostats are located in various areas (zones) of your home and sends information to the panel, which opens and closes dampers that are installed in your heating & cooling ducts to control the amount of conditioned air that is needed for each area (zone). When a zone has reached the desired temperature and the area doesn't need to be heated or cooled, the dampers close to save energy and maximize comfort in the other areas that still need to reach the desired temperature.
This is a breakthrough in the industry. In the past, extensive wiring was needed to communicate with the thermostats in each zone. Now with the wireless feature this application can work in almost any home or business.
Just imagine comfort in all areas of your home and save energy at the same time.
For more information contact Leo Costanzo.
Buzz Words for the Cooling Season
CHARGING A SYSTEM - Adding coolant or refrigerant to an HVAC system.
COMPRESSOR - A pump that increases the pressure of gas.
CONDENSATE - Vapor that is turned into a liquid as its temperature is lowered.
CONDENSER COIL - Also an outdoor coil. A device that removes the heat from the refrigerant, allowing the refrigerant to be converted from vapor to liquid.
CONDENSER FAN - A fan that passes air over the condenser coil to facilitate the removal of heat from the refrigerant.
DAMPER - Found at the exit point of ductwork, this plate usually contains grates that can be opened or closed to control the flow of air into a zone.
DRAIN PAN - Also a condensate pan. As the refrigerant vapor is liquefied, the drain pan collects the condensate and funnels it to the drain line.
EXPANSION VALVE - A valve that meters the levels of refrigerant through a temperature or pressure control.
EVAPORATOR COIL - Also an indoor coil. A device that is designed to absorb heat in the air in order to change the liquid refrigerant that flows through it into a vapor.
REFRIGERANT - A chemical that condenses from a vapor to liquid and, in the process, decreases in temperature.
SEER - Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio. A rating system developed by the U.S. Government to indicate the efficiency level of cooling equipment.
ZONING - A system that divides a home, office or space into different regions in order to better control the temperature and effectiveness of a heating and cooling system
When is the Time to Upgrade to a Heat Pump?
If you read the article on the front page, you have an understanding on how the refrigeration process works. Imagine that you took an air conditioner and flipped it around so that the hot coils were on the inside and the cold coils were on the outside. You would have a heater! It turns out that this heater works extremely well. Rather than burning a fuel, it is "moving heat". A heat pump is an air conditioner that contains a valve that lets it switch between "air conditioner" and "heater". When the valve is switched one way, the heat pump acts like an air conditioner, and when it is switched the other way it reverses the flow of Freon and acts like a heater. Heat pumps can be extremely efficient in their use of energy. During the heating process the coils in the outside air collects ice. The heat pump has to melt this ice periodically, this is called the defrost cycle, so it switches itself back to air conditioner mode to heat up the coil. To avoid pumping cold air into the house in air conditioner mode, the heat pump also lights up the burners on a gas furnace or the electric heat strip on an electric furnace to heat the cold air while the defrost cycle is operating. Once the ice is melted the heat pump switches back to the heating mode and turns off the burners or heat strip.
Because a heat pump "moves" heat rather than "generates" heat, heat pumps can provide up to 4 times the amount of energy they consume. Because you are not burning fuel the amount of pollutants in the atmosphere is reduced. This is a win - win situation.
Now that being said! When is the time to upgrade to a heat pump??? The best time is when the existing air conditioner needs to be replaced. The initial cost to install a heat pump is slightly higher than an air conditioner but the savings in energy and our environment over time is priceless.
