What’s the Difference Between an Air Conditioner and Air Handler?
Whether it’s聽AC repair聽or total聽AC system replacement, there are聽a variety of聽terms within the HVAC industry that can get聽puzzling聽for homeowners. Not to mention all of the different pieces of heating and air conditioning equipment that can be used to聽boost聽your home’s energy efficiency and air quality. Of course we can’t聽write about聽all of the variations in聽a short聽blog post, so we’ll take a look at one of the聽routine聽inquiries we see at聽天美传媒: what’s the difference between an聽air conditioner聽and an air handler?
What is an Air Handler?
An air handler contains the聽components that move聽the air throughout your home, called the blower. It is聽usually聽located聽inside the home 补苍诲听runs聽with both the heating聽补苍诲听cooling聽components聽of your HVAC system. If you take a quick聽glance聽at an air handler, it聽can聽closely resemble a furnace. Air handlers can聽run聽with an air conditioner 补苍诲听houses聽the indoor coil, used to cool and heat your home depending on which system it’s聽running聽with.
Air handler vs Heat Pump
Just like聽an air handler聽works聽with an聽AC system, an air handler works聽in tandem聽with your heat pump. Heat pumps are used to聽heat and cool you home聽by transferring heat, rather than聽generating聽it, and the air handler聽moves聽all that heated or cooled air.
Air handler vs blower
Air handlers are not blowers. This聽confuses聽some聽people, but it’s not聽that complicated聽and we’re happy to explain the difference. An air handler聽has聽the blower, and several other聽components聽in the unit. You may have dampers, filters, mixing chambers and more in an air handler. The blower is just one聽piece of the pie.
Here’s what you聽should聽know about air handlers: if you’re聽in the market聽for a conventional furnace or air conditioner, you’ll聽probably聽never need to know what an air handler is because it’s聽feasible that聽you won’t need one. However, if you’re聽in the market聽for an electric heat pump, it’s helpful to know that an air handler will聽probably聽be a part of your home’s HVAC system.
Air Handler vs. Furnace
Air handlers and furnaces聽are usually mutually exclusive. If you have a furnace you聽probably don't聽need to聽think聽about an air handler. Air handlers tend to be聽paired up聽with heat pumps and help聽regulate聽air flow throughout the聽building. Some聽models聽also provide聽backup聽heating and cooling聽elements聽to help out the heat pump. A furnace works聽on a different concept. Instead of an air handler, furnaces have聽included聽blowers that move the聽warmed聽air into your聽ventilation聽and disperse聽through聽your home. Since furnaces have combustion chambers 补苍诲听make聽heat, they don’t聽have聽some of the parts you’ll find in a聽new聽air handler.
Air Conditioners
Air conditioners contain the condenser and are聽traditionally聽situated聽outside the home. One of the most common聽confusions with聽air conditioners is that they cool the existing air in your home. Air conditioners actually聽pull out聽heat from inside your home through a聽number聽of聽components聽inside聽your system and expel it outside. The removal of heat is what makes the air feel cool, not the addition of cold air.
The warm air inside your home is聽brought聽into the system through return ducts and then聽passes across聽a refrigerant coil. As the warm air is blown across the cooled coil, heat is removed. Refrigerant lines then聽send聽the heat outside. Now you’re left with cool, comfortable indoor air that you can enjoy on the hottest of days. And that’s pretty much it. Sure, the equipment is more聽complex聽than that, but the process itself is easy to break down 补苍诲听digest.
Understanding all of your home’s heating and cooling聽components聽for the the U.S climate is probably a little聽idealistic, but there are a聽number of聽things that can be helpful to you as a homeowner. If you’d like more information about your current system and whether an air handler or air conditioner is right for your home, give the聽experts聽at聽天美传媒聽a call at (866) 963-7996 or set up a聽free appointment online聽today.
