Central Air Conditioning Compressor: A Vital Cog in Every Air Conditioning Unit

You usually don’t realize how important a central air conditioning compressor is, or even what it is, until it breaks and must be replaced. What a central air compressor does can be inferred from its name -- it compresses. Basically what the compressor does is compress low pressure, low volume gas and increases the pressure so that it will cool the air.

The central air conditioning compressor also removes vapors from the evaporator thereby ensuring a lower temperature. To sum it all up -- the central air conditioning compressor is the most important element of a central air system. Such an important part of such a technical system should only be handled by an experienced HVAC contractor. Even if your air conditioning system is working perfectly you may have a problem with your compressor.

One way to find out if your compressor is working properly is by checking your electric bill. A faulty air conditioning compressor will make the cost of your bills jump and an effective compressor will lower your electric consumption. Should you find yourself with a compressor that seems to be broken there are a few things you can do yourself before you call the repair man. The simplest step you can talk is to clean and/or replace your filters.

Frequently this will be enough to drastically improve the performance of your central air conditioning unit. The compressor is another part of the central air unit that needs to be cleaned. Like the filters it gets dirty and cleaning it out, removing the dirt, can start the cool air flowing again. Another step you can take is to find the reset button on the high-pressure limit switch, push it a couple times to reset and hopefully your problem will be solved.

You may not realize how important the compressor is until the compressor stops working. If your air conditioner does stop working and you can’t find a reason the simplest thing to do is call a trusted repair man and have your air conditioner inspected. If not it might be time to pull out the yellow pages and call the repair man. Hopefully you are still under warranty. While it might be costly up front, in terms of comfort and productivity having a good air conditioner can be priceless.