HVAC Made Easy: What is HVAC and What Does It Stand For?
The term HVAC is a very familiar one when it comes to construction or even home renovation. And we know that it’s necessary for our house or office to maintain a comfortable environment. But how exactly does an HVAC system do that? Let’s take a look at the basic information about HVAC and how it works.
What is HVAC?
HVAC mainly maintains the temperature and humidity level of houses and commercial buildings. It is crucial for having a cozy environment inside the building to function everything properly. With advancing technology, HVAC systems are becoming more and more available, and the system in itself is more advanced than ever.
What does HVAC stand for?
All right, now it’s time to understand the term. HVAC stands for Heating, Ventilation, and Air conditioning. As simple as that
You might know them separately but when combined it creates a system that serves multiple needs simultaneously. So with an H.V.A.C in your building, you’re getting clean air, regulated temperature in winter and summer, a comfortable humidity level, and a fresh environment.
What is an HVAC system?
Now you have an idea of what is HVAC but that’s not enough to know the system properly.
An HVAC system is the combination of all the machines and their functional units. When your HVAC is cleaning the air, heating it, and providing a cooling system- it’s doing that as a whole system. There are units like Air Filter, Exhaust outlet, Compressor, Coil- all of them are performing a single assigned task.
Your room’s natural ventilation process keeps the air fresh and odor-free always. The heating system provides warmth in winter and vice versa for air conditioning. And when you’re combining these works and considering them as a whole- you have an HVAC system.
How does HVAC Work?
As I said earlier, it performs the basic three functions that make the indoor livable. The V or ventilation does the work of keeping the indoor air clean by maintaining a flow of outside air. The other two, H and A are responsible for the inner temperature.
Let’s understand these individually,
Ventilation
The first and foremost responsibility of a ventilator is to maintain a proper flow of fresh air in the room. It keeps the room free from harmful airborne bacteria, moisture, dust, smoke, etc. Even the humidity level is monitored by a ventilator to keep the air quality up to the mark.
Heating
Office buildings and residential apartments or any habitable construction need heating in winter (or in any cold environment). That’s where the heating system comes into play. It warms up the room by heating air produced from a furnace.
Air Condition
It’s time to cool down the heat. An air conditioner is part of the whole system that maintains a low temperature. It emits cool air through ductwork to counter the excessive heat in the environment.
We generally use three types of H V A C systems.
- Split and Window AC
- Packaged Heating & Air Conditioning System
- Duct Free (Mini-Split)
In a Split AC, the heat and cold are maintained separately, but in a packaged system- the whole thing is inside of one big basket. Although the split system is most popular, packaged heating can be equally efficient. Whereas the Duct free system is more of a customized version that provides individual control in every room.
To choose the best HVAC system, I would recommend you consult an expert or a technician. Also, you can do further research on different types here.
Each of these systems comes with its own methods but in the end, the same mechanical and electrical units are involved in the operation. For instance, the duct is responsible for maintaining the flow of cool and warm air. If the duct is in trouble, the system will partially collapse.
The exhaust outlet is another crucial unit in the whole system. It releases the heated air so that the room or entire building remains cool enough. You might have noticed the large machines placed outside of a building with a fan inside. That’s actually the outdoor unit of HVAC. The airflow created by the fans helps to release the heated air outside.
The outdoor unit isn’t all about the fan though. It has a compressor and a coil to cool down the air through refrigerants. So, as you can see the whole system is in sync to provide the best living or working environment.
That’s pretty it about the basics of HVAC. I’m sure you’ll make a wise decision about installing one in your house. Also, check out our other guides to keep yourself updated.
