Refrigerative Air Conditioning Glossary

Absorption Cycle:
Abosorption Cycles utilize a thermal or chemical process to produce the refrigeration effect necessary to provide chilled water. Most commercial absorption chillers utilize lithium bromide and water as the fluid pair.

Air Conditioner:
Assembly of equipment for the simultaneous control of air temperature and climate control.

Air Diffuser:
Air distribution outlet designed to direct airflow into desired patterns and places.

Air Flow:
The distribution or movement of air.

Capacity:
The ability of a heating or cooling system to heat or cool a given amount of space.

Central Air Conditioner System:
System in which air is developed at a central location and carried to and from the rooms by one or more fans and a system of ducts.

Compressor:
The pump that moves the refrigerant air from the indoor evaporator to the outdoor condenser and back to the evaporator again.

Condensation:
The process by which a gas is changed into a liquid at a constant temperature by heat removal.

Cooling Load:
Heat which flows into a space from outdoors and/or indoors.

Direct Vent:
Pulls outside air for combustion and vents combustion gases directly outside.

Duct:
A pipe or closed conduit made of sheet metal, fiberglass board or other suitable material used for conducting air to and from an air conditioing unit.

Ductwork:
Pipes or channels that carry air throughout a building or home.

Evaporator:
Absorbs heat from the surrounding air or liquid and moves it outside the refrigerated area by means of a refrigerant.

Filter:
A device used to remove dust and other particles from air for the purposes of reducing the load on the respiratory system.

Heat Pump:
An air conditioner that contains a valve that allows it to alternate between heating and cooling.

Humidistat:
A device designed to regulate humidity input by reacting to changes in the moisture content of the air.

Indoor Unit:
This is usually located inside the house and contains the indoor coil, fan, motor and filtering device.

Insulation:
Any material that slows down the transfer of heat.

Kilowatt (kW):
Equal to 1,000 watts. Kilowatt-hour (kWh) - A common unit of electrical consumption measured by the total energy created by one kilowatt in one hour..

Package System:
A piece of air conditioning and heating equipment where all components are located in one cabinet.

Refrigerant:
A substance that produces a refrigerating effect while expanding or vaporizing.

Reversing Valve:
A device in a heat pump that reverses the flow of refrigerant as the system is switched from cooling to heating.

Setpoint:
The temperature to which a thermostat is set for desired comfort level.

Split System:
A central air conditioner consisting of two or more major components. The system usually consists of a compressor-containing unit and condenser, installed outside the building and a non-compressor - containing air handling unit installed within the building. This is the most common type of system installed in a home.

Temperature:
The measure of the intensity of heat that a substance possesses.

Thermostat:
A temperature control device, typically found on a wall inside the home that consists of a series of sensors.

Ventilation:
The process of supplying or removing air, by natural or mechanical means, to or from any space.

Watt:
A unit of power that equals one joule per second.

Zone System:
A method of dividing a home into zones and enabling you to control the amount of comfort provided to each.

>>Contact us now to find out what we can do for you, request a quote here...