Does a Heat Pump Use Refrigerant?
Using heat pumps in Chandler, AZ is a reliable and efficient choice to keeping your home cool in the summer and warm in the winter. They essentially act as all-in-one units, with the same basic system as an air conditioner used to perform heating functions as well as air conditioning functions. Does a heat pump use refrigerant? Absolutely. Indeed, without refrigerant gas, the heat pump couldn’t run, making refrigerant an indispensable part of the unit’s ability to function. Explaining how heat pumps work can help you understand the role that refrigerant plays in the process.
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The exact type of refrigerant and the amount uses varies by model, as do the precise details of the heating and cooling process. The general parameters are unchanged, however. The refrigerant starts out as a gas before entering a compression valve that subjects it to a huge amount of heat and pressure. It then releases the gas into a series of compression coils, where the heat is bled off and the gas reverts to a liquid (still under a lot of pressure). From there, it moves through an expansion valve, which releases a set amount into a series of evaporator coils. As it evaporates, it cools the surrounding air: reverting to a gas and return back to the compression valve to start the cycle again.
As you may have noticed, there are two sets of valves/coils: one that heats the surrounding air and one that cools it. In a heat pump, there’s one set of valves/coils inside the house and one set outside. In the summer, the inside set serves as the expansion/evaporator, cooling the air, while the outside set serves as the compressor, warming the air. In the winter time, the two roles are basically swapped, and the inside set warms the air while the outside set cools the air.
The process is very cost efficient – saving you money over a traditional gas furnace – and it works well in areas with mild winters, which is why heat pumps in Chandler, AZ are fairly common. The experts at Goettl Air Conditioning – Phoenix can perform installation and repair services on your heat pump, as well as answering questions like “does a heat pump use refrigerant?” Pick up the phone and give us a call today.
