Ah, springtime in Paris…a dream come true!
You’ve packed accordingly, taken part in a tour so you cover all the highlights and then some, and even brought your good digital camera so you don’t have to rely solely on your Smart Phone.
But, uh, as departure time drew nearer, you didn’t quite have enough time to learn basic French. But that’s okay! You have a handy English-to-French dictionary. Plus, the tour guide speaks fluent French, so what could go wrong?
Well, how about when you and your spouse go out for a late-evening aperitif? First, you see “aperitif” on the menu, and right away you think “I don’t know what a ‘tif’ is, but I certainly don’t want a pair of them…not at this hour!” And, however awkwardly, on and on it goes.
Moving right along to your central air system, how much do you know about it? Do you speak any of the language to help you better communicate with your service provider when the time comes to request repair service or a quote on a new system?
If not, the following terms and definitions will at least give you a head start.
BTUh – British thermal units per hour. For example, 12,000 BTUh equals a ton of cooling.
Thermostat – Monitors and controls the functions of a heating and cooling system.
Split System – The most common type of system installed, it’s the combination of an outdoor unit (heat pump or air conditioner) with an indoor unit (air handler or furnace).
Compressor – Often called the heart of the system, it circulates refrigerant from the indoor evaporator to the outdoor condenser and back again.
Condenser Fan – It distributes air over the condenser which cools it to the desired temperature.
Condenser coil – Also called the outdoor coil, it’s a series of tubes filled with refrigerant that remove heat from the gaseous refrigerant and converts it back to a liquid state.
Evaporator Coil – Also called the indoor coil, it’s a network of tubes filled with refrigerant that removes moisture and heat from indoor air as liquid refrigerant evaporates.
Refrigerant – The chemical used in refrigerators, heat pumps, and air conditioners to move heat into or out of an interior space. By boiling at a very low temp, it can evaporate and absorb heat.
Refrigerant Charge – The amount of refrigerant required in a system.
MERV – An abbreviation for Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value which is the standard method for comparing the efficiency of an air filter. Ranging from 1 to 16, it measures how well a filter removes particles from the air. The higher the rating, the better.
SEER – Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio. It’s a measure of annual or seasonal efficiency of a central AC system or heat pump. The higher a unit’s SEER, the greater its energy efficiency.
Not so difficult, right? And yet, no matter how much or little AC lingo you know, Optimum Air hears you loud and clear anytime you need our services. For routine maintenance, high-quality repair work, and new system installation, call us today or anytime at all.