Air Conditioning Systems - How it All Works

Central air conditioning systems are the largest and most complicated of all air-conditioning systems. Because of this, it is mainly used in large buildings such as apartment complexes and office buildings. The reason why this type of air-conditioning is used instead of window units or portable air conditioning units is because they are more economical to run in the long run. Window units are generally only good for small rooms and are not practical for cooling large areas.

Central air units are a set of machines and parts that work in unison to cool air. Generally a separate space such as a small room will be needed to install this system. This type of air conditioners consists of four different parts or systems. They are the compressor, which will be larger than ordinary air conditioner compressors, condenser, evaporator and the thermostatic expansion valve. If these parts sound familiar it is because they are also found in refrigerators, the main difference being that they will be bigger. There are basically two different types of central air conditioning units. The direct expansion system also known as the DX system and the chilled water system are the 2 basic types.

The DX system will use a big compressor and condenser which will be installed in one room and the cooling coil and evaporator will be installed in another room. The chilled air is then distributed via air ducts to different rooms. This system is used in smaller buildings and is the more common of the two types. The chilled water system is housed in one room and uses a sophisticated system using brine solution to cool the air. The system is more noisy and complicated to run which means it needs qualified technicians to keep it running smoothly. Chilled water systems are used for large buildings. The biggest advantage a chilled system has is that if there is leak in the pipe only water is lost and not expensive refrigerant.

As far as DX central air conditioners go, there are a number of players in the market today such as, Whirlpool, Samsung, LG, GE and so on. They all have their websites which makes it easy to find prices and size. As far Chilled water systems go, there are only a few manufacturers that make them. The reason for this is because they are more complicated and expensive to make. Some of the companies that make this type of system are GE and Westinghouse.