Air Conditioning - Advantages of a Heat Pump

What is a Heat pump?

A heat pump is a home appliance (similar to a fridge freezer) that heats and cools the atmosphere in the home. It offers home owners comfort that is normally reserved for high-rise office buildings, five-star hotels and executive apartments. It heats, cools, dehumidifies and continuously filters the air of dust and other impurities. It also circulates the air - without heating or cooling - to eliminate stuffiness. A typical heat pump is two units - an indoor unit, and an outdoor unit. For this reason, they are often called "split systems". Many have remote controls for maximum convenience.

How does it work?

A fridge transfers heat from its food compartment to the coil at the back. Like a fridge, it can be reversed so that the heat flow goes the other way. Heat pumps transfer heat from outside air into the home in winter, and transfers heat from inside the home to outside air in summer.

But how can it heat the home and winter when it is freezing outside?

A home freezer can take the temperature of its food compartment below 0°, in fact as low as -6°C. If it can remove heat from inside a freezer to below 0°, the same process - used in the heat pumps - can extract enough heat from cold outside air to warm the home. Although our body's feel cold at these low temperatures, there is still a lot of heat energy in the outside air at 0°C.

What size will I need for my home?

Every home is as individual as its owner. The key to selecting the right size heat pump for your home is an accurate estimate of the heat that will need to be transferred into your home in winter for heating, and out of your home in summer for cooling. This needs to be carried out by an experienced and qualified specialist like Excel Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Ltd.

What factors will affect the size of heat pump I need?

The amount of heating needed will depend on the heat loss through walls, windows and roofs. To minimise heat loss and before you invest in the heat pump, it is always a good idea to properly insulate walls and roofs first. In particularly cold climates double glazing windows will insulate them and keep heat loss to a minimum. By insulating first, the size of heat pump selected will generally be smaller and therefore be cheaper to install and run.

The northern aspect of the home is also an important factor. North facing rooms will catch the sun better and more generally need less heating. Conversely, South facing rooms tend to be colder and will need more heating.

Do heat pumps take up a lot of room?

No. Heat pumps are designed to be unobtrusive in size, neutral decor and low noise levels. There are also different types of heat pumps, from a stylish through the wall packaged unit to different varieties of split systems. The least obtrusive is a ducted split system. This can be hidden in the ceiling or under floor and only the grilles for distributing the air are visible.

How much does cost to buy and install a pump?

As stated before, every home is as unique as its owner. The installed cost of the heat pump will therefore be unique for each home and will depend on the size and type of heat pump installed. As an example, a standard three-bedroom 100 m2 timber framed New Zealand home may use a 5.5 KW hi-wall split system heat pump to warm the lounge, dining and kitchen as one open plan area. This type of installation would currently cost just over $3000 plus gst to install. A very broad guide to heat pump installed cost is $60-$100/m2 plus gst of served area. Served area is the area being heated and excludes laundries, garages, toilets and other utility areas in the home.

How much does cost to heat my home with a heat pump?

To answer this question the amount of heating that is currently necessary will need to be known. For the purpose of explanation, assume 5KW of heating is needed. Electrical heating appliances are normally 100% efficient so for 5 KW of heating one will need to pay for 5 KW of electric energy. Gas heating appliances are less than 100% efficient. For discussion, let's assume that they are 90% efficient. This means, to gain 5KW of heating, one has to pay for 5.6 KW of gas energy. Although gas may be cheaper per KW, one has to use more of it to produce the same heating effect. Heat pumps transfer heat from outside air and in this way produces two to three times more heat. Its efficiency - if it can be called that - is 200% to 300%. This means for 5 KW of heating, one will only pay for around 2 KW of electric energy. Heat pump heating is roughly a third of the cost of electric heating and about half the cost of gas heating.

How can a heat pump be cheaper to run when it has more moving parts?

A heat pump uses electricity to transfer heat. Electric heaters convert electric energy to heat energy and are thereby limited by the amount of electricity used. A heat pump has no such limitation and can transfer twice to three times the heat from outside air than can be converted from the electricity at uses.

Are heat pumps noisy?

No, they are generally not noisy. The source of the noise in a typical heat pump is air impinging on the grille as it is forced out of the unit. Air noise is marginally higher than ambient background noise and is usually not distracting.

Do they dry the air: like on an airplane?

Heating or cooling air changes its characteristics. Heating air increases its ability to carry moisture and suspension by reducing its relative humidity content. This is the same process used in clothes dryers. Cooling air causes the moisture in the air to condense out of suspension. This reduces the absolute humidity content of the air and is the process used in the humidifiers. Either way, reducing moisture in the home is beneficial by discouraging mould and mildew by producing a healthier living environment.

Are they reliable?

Yes. Heat pumps are reliable. They use the same process as the home fridge or freezer and have the same level of dependability and useful life expectancy.

How easy are they to repair?

Provided the service person is experienced and qualified, repairing heat pumps is as straightforward as repairing the fridge or freezer. For repairs, talk to Excel and Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Ltd.

Do they need servicing?

Like cars, heat pumps should be regularly serviced for optimum operation. This involves cleaning the air filter and perhaps checking that the refrigeration charge is correct. It would be a good idea to service the pumps just before the beginning of each extreme season i.e before winter and again before summer.

How are heat pumps better than other forms of heating?

Apart from being cheaper to run, heat pumps offer other benefits that heating only systems cannot.

1) Heat pumps don't burn oxygen or create stuffiness like open fires do. They are designed for all year round comfort, not just for four months during winter.

2) They produce low-density heat which is safer for children and elderly, unlike fires, oil filled or electric fan heaters.

3) They are unmatched for convenience and ease-of-use.

4) They do not pollute their atmosphere with the products of combustion, and they use ozone friendly refrigerant.

All in all, heat pumps offer the best investment in home heating and comfort.
Taranaki Airconditioning Heatpumps

A Furnace, Heat Pump, Or Central Air Conditioning - Which is Better in Colder Climates

HVAC systems may seem like technology from another world in that most individuals do not have a halfway decent understanding of how these systems work.  For the most part, the principles behind a heat pump are the same with a central air conditioner.  Furnaces work a little differently.

One common setup is to have a heat pump. Depending upon the region and climate, a home may have a separate furnace and air conditioner instead.  Having separate dedicated heating and cooling units are common in harsher colder climates such as Minnesota. Having just a traditional heat pump system would likely allow you to freeze while the heat pump continues to waste electricity trying achieve a warmer interior temperature.

Heat pumps are simply an exchanger or transferer of warm air.  In summer time, the refrigerant in the interior coils absorb warm air from inside the home and transfers it to the coils in the outside condenser unit. After the heat dissipates from the warmed refrigerant, the now cooled refrigerant travels back to the interior coils to absorb more interior heat. What is left inside the home is cooler air.  The advantage of a heat pump is that it is able to reverse this process without burning fuel, translating to fewer energy costs.  A heat pump works best in moderate temperature climates.  In a little harsher climate and region, some heat pumps are outfitted with auxiliary heating which is in essence a screen of wires in which current passes through thereby generating heat much like a kitchen toaster. A fan then blows this additional warmer air into the home's interior.

There are newer heat pumps on the market that are designed for heating in near zero temperatures, but are not as common and are more costly. These newer heat pumps called Cold Climate heat pumps and All Climate heat pumps perform better in colder climates than traditional heat pumps, but can lack sufficient ability to comfortably cool a home's interior in summer time.

In colder regions such as Minnesota, furnaces are still a necessity and are one of the more affordably efficient means to heat a home in the winter months. A traditional furnace coupled with a traditional heat pump would be much more efficient combination than that of having a central air conditioning system.

Commercial Air Conditioning - Cooling Solutions For Work Spaces

If your work space is full of heat generating electrical and electronics, then you definitely need some heat removal system to save yourself and your equipments. Air conditioning is one way of doing it. In an industrial set up, proper heating, ventilation or air conditioning (HVAC) is essential to ensure that the work environment is safe for other employees and workers.

Which places need commercial or industrial air conditioning?

Places where large number of people and heat generating equipments are employed need air conditioning to remove heat and circulate fresh air and remove the stuffy gases out.

Example: Hospitals, IT companies, manufacturing factories, hotels, etc.

Types of Commercial & Industrial Air Conditioning

Modern systems use ductless or split air conditioning. The cooling unit and condenser are located far away from the room on roof tops usually. The cooling is thermostat controlled. Ducted cooling system is not used these days due to inefficiency.

Apart from that many different cooling technologies are available, such as air cooling, water cooling, glycol cooling and chilled water cooling.

Air cooled systems

• Widely used for its convenient ductless set up and easy maintenance.


• There is a condenser unit outside which helps in exchanging the fresh air and removing the hot air inside.


• But the cooling pipes cannot run very long distances. Hence, the height between the work space and the roof or outside environment can be a constraint.

Glycol cooled systems

• This is a much sophisticated cooling system in which temperatures below 50繙F (10繙C) can be achieved.


• Glycol is the coolant used. These can run for long distances and can provide cooling for multiple work spaces with a single condenser unit.


• But, quality and quantity of glycol should be optimum and hence need more maintenance.

Water cooled system

• Water is cooled inside a cooling tower which in turn is relayed back to the heat exchanger placed in the work environment.


• Multiple work spaces can be cooled with a single cooling tower.


• But, maintenance of cooling tower and optimum quality of water required can pose economic set back.

Chilled water system

• This has a greater heat removing capacity.


• One chiller plant is required and it can cool an entire building.


• Can be used for larger areas with greatest efficiency.


• But installation charges are sky high and the system removes lots of moisture from the air which might cause problems for employees.

Depending upon your requirements, you can choose among these discussed cooling systems to cool and ventilate your work space. Some of them can be worked in combination with each other as a single system doesn't work in all environments. Choose wisely and make your work space employee friendly.

Amana Air Conditioning Units

Amana Company was developed in the year of 1934 by George Forester. This company is famous in producing high class heating and air conditioning system. This company has constructed the walk-in air cooler for US military and for that the honor of the company has got Army-Navy's Cherished E award due to their excellent performance and construction.

They are both portable and fixable. However; this company is famous for its portable air conditioners. These portable air conditioners can be easily fitted in any house and can furnish the needs for the cooling. There are several Amana units which are furnished with a remote control mechanism. The remote control system possesses several functions which can be modified easily. Therefore; you can operate your unit according to your will. The speed of fan and thermostat settings is alterable and hence the Amana units are full of comfort and ease.

There are mainly three types of air conditioners which are manufactured by Amana. Like the central air conditioning units, the window and the portable air conditioners. Another good opportunity for the costumers is that there are several online shops which sell these units. You can find these air conditioners on eBay at much discounted rates. The portable air conditioners manufactured by them can be moved easily from one place to another since they possess wheels. Even these units can make the whole house cooled, if their position is changed at regular interval. These units expel out dampness from the house by their powerful exhaust fans. However; in case of increased humidity, their property of expelling out dampness could be reduced. In such cases, when there is increased humidity, the manual cleaning of the tank could be required.

Amana air conditioners are power and cost-effective. This company has generated several fantastic models which are superior to other brands and which are famous due to their good performance and Excellencies. The central units made by Amana are preferred on other types and brands since the quality of these units is marvelous. They can be run for considerable long time without any defect. The company also furnishes warranty via which any type of problem could be tackled effectively. In conclusion, they are liked by the costumers due to their reliability and good performance. The company furnishes excellent models along with backup service for trouble shooting.

Air Conditioner Parts

The three main parts of an air conditioner unit are the compressor, the condenser and the evaporator. The compressor and condenser are located on the outside of the air conditioner and the evaporator is located on the inside.

The basic functioning of the air conditioner is based on the principle of successive heating and cooling of a highly volatile liquid, such as a Freon. The liquid first enters the compressor, where it is compressed into a gas. This releases heat and makes the liquid cooler. The dissipated heat is radiated outwards with the help of a fan. The liquid then enters the condenser, where it absorbs heat from the surroundings to reconvert into a gas. Hence, the surroundings become cool. The entire process continues cyclically and this causes cooling of the room.

Besides the three fundamental Air Conditioner Parts, an air conditioner also has a hot coil on the outside to dissipate heat, a cool coil on the inside to absorb heat, two fans (one outside and one inside) and a control circuit to modify the temperature. This is done by changing the rotation speeds of the fans using a potentiometer.

The most important and expensive Air Conditioner Part is the compressor. Companies provide warranties on the compressor and a good quality compressor can function efficiently for several years. New compressors can be bought and installed into the air conditioner if the original one develops faults. It is ideal to have a compressor made by the same company as the rest of the air conditioner. However, it is also necessary to mention that only a few companies manufacture their own compressors; the rest just buy them and install in their units.

Condensers and evaporators can also be replaced. The same case is applicable for the cooling and heating coils. Problems in the coils lead to faulty dissipation of heat, thus causing unsatisfactory results. Fans are the easiest components of the air conditioner units to replace. They are simply fitted by screws on the outer part of the air conditioner and with wires to the air conditioner circuit board.

One more component of the air conditioner is its outer cover. The cover has no other function except to lend an aesthetic appeal to the air conditioner. It is generally made of molded plastic and is available in a wide range of colors and designs. The same can be said about buttons and knobs. A water-carrying duct is essential if the air conditioner faces the road on the outside.

How to Fix a Leaking Air Conditioner

Central Heating and Air Conditioning is composed of two separate components, the outside Condenser (with the fan) and an air handler in your ceiling or in your garage. Your air conditioner not only cools your home, but also removes humidity from the air. This water condenses on metal coils inside your air handler and drips down into a drain pan. The AC condensate drain line lets water flow from the drain pan to somewhere outside close to the ground typically right near your outside unit. Over time this drain line gets clogged with algae and other muck. Once clogged the drain pan can overflow leaking water onto your ceiling and potentially cause thousands of dollars in damage.

Your course of action as a Homeowner? Unclog that drain line!!!

Options:

1. Drag a garden hose over to your drain line. Turn on the water and hold the hose tightly to the end of the drain. Hold the end of the hose to the opening of the drain as tightly as you can for about ten seconds. Then watch the water that drains out. Was it clear, or was there chunks of pink/brown/green slime? If it was clear, you haven't popped the clog loose and need to repeat. You will generally be soaked from head to toe by the time you release the clog using this method. You can prevent clogs by doing this once a month as preventive maintenance.

2. Find a Shop-Vac. Make sure to plug it into a GFI outlet because we will be dealing with water of course. Somehow get the hose of the vacuum to make a nice tight seal on the end of the drain line, if it's not air tight, you won't be sucking anything out.Turn on the vacuum and... wait. If you hear any gurgling or water moving, turn the vacuum off and look inside, did you get any gunk out? No? Repeat.

3. The Drain Pump. Implemented by an Air Conditioning technician with 23 years of experience that was fed up with those two other options. No garden hose, no extension cords, no electricity. It's as simple as pumping up a bike tire. It comes with all the fittings to make a nice tight seal on any size drain line, and is so easy to pump that a four-year-old can do it. Check out our videos, we can prove it.

Let Your Air Conditioning Repair Specialist Perform Routine Check-Ups

Some people wait until the very last minute to solicit the help of an air conditioning repair service. Now, of course, if someone weren't experiencing any problems with the home cooling unit, it probably wouldn't make too much sense for them to ask for professional help. However, taking preventative measures is the best thing someone can do in this case.

Scheduling routine check-ups at least once a year, for instance, can greatly help with the upkeep and maintenance of an A/C unit. These checkups can help to ensure that people aren't left to deal with the sometimes unbearably hot summers without some type of relief. Having to deal with the aforementioned situation is probably one of the most miserable things someone can go through. This is especially true for those who live in areas where temperatures can reach over 100 degrees.

Just imagine being at home, in the middle of the summertime, and you are sitting inside watching television and your kids are sitting on the floor playing board games. You look outside your window and notice that the sun is beaming down, and you're thinking about how lucky you are to have cool air blowing in your home.

A few minutes later, the phone suddenly rings, and you get up to answer it. Once your conversation is complete, you walk back to the sofa, and you suddenly notice that it's starting to get extremely hot. You go and check the cooling system to see what the temperature is on. You go to press the button in order to decrease the temperature, but you notice that nothing is working. You eventually come to the conclusion that the entire unit is broken.

Since you just came off of summer vacation, you don't have the extra money that it's going to take to get the unit fixed immediately. So, your first inclination is to go and buy a bunch of fans until you can either get a window unit or get the unit fixed.

Once you finally bring the fans home, it feels as if all they are doing is blowing hot air. That's because your home is actually acting like an oven. With the unit being broken, your house is just retaining the heat. It's actually housing the heat and working like an incubator, so all of that hot air is just being blown around by the fans.

This entire scenario could have been avoided if you had called upon an air conditioning repair service to do some routine maintenance on your unit beforehand. Therefore, getting routine checkups by an air conditioning repair service is very beneficial.