Realty.com » Resources and Services

Login • Register

Resources and Services

Consumer Guides

Central Air Conditioning

Air conditioners are powered by electricity, and a lot of energy is needed to run them. They also use a refrigerant to transfer heat from indoors to outdoors. This refrigerant circulates through a closed-circuit loop of copper tubing that runs between an outdoor coil, called a condenser, and an indoor coil, called an evaporator. The refrigerant raises and drops in temperature as it absorbs and gives off heat, and it changes from liquid to gas and back to liquid again as its temperature and pressure change.

When cold refrigerant circulates through the indoor evaporator, it absorbs the heat from the room air blown across it. As the refrigerant absorbs the heat, it vaporizes and travels through the tubing to the condenser coil and compressor unit that are outdoors. As it moves through the unit, it emits heat that dissipates into the outdoor air; an electric fan that blows across the coil assists the process. As a result, the refrigerant cools and becomes a high-pressure liquid. An expansion valve further reduces the temperature and pressure, then returns the refrigerant to the evaporator, completing the cycle.

A central air conditioner usually is combined with a forced-air furnace, using the furnace’s blower to draw room air into the unit through the return-air ductwork that runs throughout the house.

A room air conditioner, mounted in a window or built into an exterior wall, contains a condenser coil, a compressor, an evaporator coil, and a blower, just like its larger cousin, the central air conditioner.

Hybrids split ductless systems cool different zones of a house, each controlled separately. A split-system’s main components are separated: an evaporator coil is indoors with the furnace, and a condenser coil and compressor unit are outdoors.

More Popular Entries

Additions & Remodels

Stylish Basement Remodels
Checklist: Recommended Questions to Ask a Contractor
Home Improvement Trends

Agents (Real Estate), Appraisers & Home Inspectors

Townhouses
The Final Walk Through
Bringing it all Home—the Closing

Appliances

Garbage Disposals
Tip: Dishwasher
Tip: Instant Hot Water Dispenser Problems

Builders (New Homes), Architects & Designers

Small Feng Shui Tips
Checklist: Questions to Ask Your Architect
Tip: Water Seepage

Carpentry & Cabinets

Tip: Built-In Desks
Different Sized Cabinets
Cost and Quality of Kitchen Cabinets

Cleaning Services

Cleaning Asphalt Shingle Roof
Checklist: Get Your Home Ready for Spring
Musty Smell in Attic

Concrete, Brick & Stone

Tuck-pointing
Concrete Sawing
Retaining Walls

Consumer Guides

Townhouses
The Final Walk Through
Bringing it all Home—the Closing

Design Ideas

Herb Gardens
Illuminate Your Kitchen
Building a New Home

Electrical, Telephone & Data

Illuminate Your Kitchen
Checklist: Electrical Wiring Project
Upgrade for the Future

Expert Advice

Refinishing a Peeling Porch
Cleaning Asphalt Shingle Roof
Frozen Pipes

Flooring

Choosing the Best Carpet for Your Home
Steam Cleaning Grout
Cleaning Hardwood Floor Inlay

Handyman Services

Checklist: Biyearly Maintenance
Checklist: Fall Maintenance
Do-It-Yourself Compared to Hiring a Pro

Heating & Cooling

Tip: Ceiling Fan Solutions
Air Quality
Checklist: Cold Weather Survival Tips

Home Construction

Do Homework Before Building a New Home
Tip: Panelized Homes
Building a New Home

Landscape, Decks & Fences

Checklist: Spring Maintenance
Refinishing a Peeling Porch
Herb Gardens

Moving & Storage

Remodeling Increases Value
Preparing Your House for Sale
Checklist: Increase the Potential Sale Price of Your Home

Other Services

Radon Testing and Abatement
Disability Elevators
Tip: Mildew on Wood

Painting & Staining

Fun Painting Techniques
Interior/Exterior Painting
Peeling Paint

Plumbing

Frozen Pipes
Water Damage
Loss of Pressure

Quick Tips

Checklist: Spring Maintenance
Checklist: Biyearly Maintenance
Checklist: Fall Maintenance

Roofing, Siding & Gutters

Helpful Roofing Terms
Roof Treatments
Comparing Aluminum to Vinyl Siding

SP Feature Article

The Internet Will Change the Buying of Services

Walls & Ceilings

Paint Over Paneling
Nicotine Stains on Walls and Ceilings
Repair Small Hole

Windows & Doors

Tip: Door Problems Solved
Awnings
Checklist: Home Safety

copyright 2008 Realty.com