As summer slowly fades and temperatures cool off, it’s a perfect time to make sure everything is in order with your HVAC system. To take care of your unit in the best way possible, you need to know the answers to common questions: How does my HVAC work? What maintenance is necessary? What does HVAC stand for?
Let’s go over these questions and more so you can maximize the efficiency, longevity, and cost-effectiveness of your heating and cooling system.
What Is an HVAC System?
Let’s start simple: What does HVAC stand for? This acronym sums up what your HVAC unit provides for your home: heating, ventilation, and air conditioning.
An HVAC system usually consists of a furnace, air conditioner, and air filter to perform its key functions. Different kinds of units use different hardware and processes to heat or cool your home. Ductwork gives the hot or cool air a way to travel from the unit through your home, and the thermostat allows you to control the unit.
How Does an HVAC System Work?
Each HVAC system functions a little differently, but they all work to filter and heat or cool air before distributing it into a space.
To heat your home, your HVAC uses electricity, a fuel like gas or propane, or heat from the air outside to generate warmth. For cooling, your system may pump the hot air out of your home or push air through a refrigerant cycle.
In this cycle, liquid refrigerant flows through the evaporator coil and absorbs the heat as it evaporates, cooling the air. The refrigerant (now in the form of a hot gas) then moves outside to the condenser coil where it releases the heat and turns back into a liquid so it can run through the cycle again.
After the air has been heated, cooled, and filtered, the ventilation system blows the air into the space. This can involve a fan, air conductor, ductwork, etc. The ventilation system is also responsible for cycling out old air and filtering in new, fresh air.
What Are Common Types of HVAC Units?
HVAC systems come in all shapes and sizes. This quick overview can help you get an idea of what will work best for your space.
Central Air Conditioning Systems
Central AC distributes cooled air through ducts to control the temperature and air quality of your home.
- Key Benefits: Long-lasting; efficient; quiet; provides consistent cooling, humidity control, and improved air quality
- Best For: Heating entire homes/buildings or multiple rooms at once, structures that already have ductwork
Ductless Mini-Split Systems
Ductless mini-split systems involve multiple smaller indoor units that connect to a central outdoor unit.
- Key Benefits: Small and easy to install, can cool/heat individual spaces differently with zoning, saves money and energy because air isn’t lost while traveling through ducts
- Best For: Homes without ductwork; situations where you need to cool only sections of a structure, e.g., home additions, multifamily housing, etc.
Heat Pumps
Heat pumps use electricity to move hot air either into or out of your home to maintain a pleasant temperature.
- Key Benefits: Quiet, saves money and energy because heat is transferred rather than generated, improves air quality due to high circulation, heats and cools evenly
- Best For: Moderate climates where winters aren’t too harsh, with few temperatures below freezing
Hybrid Systems
Hybrid systems combine a heat pump and a gas or propane furnace (connected to a single thermostat) to give you the best of both worlds.
- Key Benefits: Efficient, uses less fossil fuel, minimizes wear on heat pump, can more easily warm homes than a heat pump alone but is less expensive than a furnace alone
- Best For: Areas that experience typical weather for all four seasons, families replacing existing equipment
How Do I Increase My HVAC’s Efficiency?
Efficiency is key when it comes to making the most of your HVAC investment, saving money, and supporting the environment. The best way to keep up your HVAC’s efficiency is to schedule regular maintenance.
It’s generally recommended to have an HVAC professional perform maintenance on your system at least twice a year—one for cooling season and one for heating season. If your unit is producing strange noises or smells, weak airflow, or inconsistent temperatures, however, it needs more immediate attention.
A professional HVAC tech will check and change your filters, make sure ducts are clean and clear, top off refrigerant levels, and more. These checkups will help your unit run more smoothly and efficiently, increasing its longevity and reducing your energy bills.
Improving HVAC Efficiency: Bonus Tips
These additional tips can also boost your unit’s efficiency.
- Follow best energy practices: Replace filters often (about every 3 months), use zoning systems to heat/cool just the rooms you need, and program your thermostat to turn off at different times of the day.
- Check insulation, sealing, and ductwork: Leaks or faults in your insulation, sealing, and ductwork can cause cool and warm air to be lost before it gets to all of the rooms in your home, forcing your unit to work harder. Have your HVAC techs check out the infrastructure of your home and make recommendations for combatting this issue.
- Choose an energy-efficient model: Ask your HVAC team about how a SEER unit would work in your home and do some research about the energy-efficiency rebates available in your state.
- Work with a reliable technician: HVAC professionals can use their expertise to evaluate your unit’s performance in relation to these tips. They can then give you specific recommendations for improving your unit’s efficiency, reducing both energy use and high utility bills.
Bell Cow: Your Personal Guide to HVAC Units
At Bell Cow Service Company, your comfort and safety at home is one of our highest priorities. So if you have questions about your HVAC unit; wonder, “What does HVAC stand for?”; or want to update your heating and cooling system, you can find answers and help from our team. Don’t hesitate to make an appointment with us soon and experience the care, quality, and honesty of Bell Cow.