Some homeowners prefer using an air conditioning unit while others prefer using an air handler. When others hear there are two different options to cool down their house they get confused in the differences between the two. Most assume they are the same thing since both cool down the inside of a home. Although they both may have the same job, both work in very different ways. New Start Heating & Air will share the differences between the two units and why in the end, you may favor one over the other.

How Does an Air Handler Unit Work?

An air handler is different from an air conditioner in a few ways. One is that an air handler is located within the home much like the furnace of an HVAC unit. The air conditioner is located outside either on the side of the home or on the roof. The air handler is connected to the furnace just like the air conditioner would be. An air handler can both cool and heat the inside of the home whereas an air conditioner cools and the furnace heats. An air handler cools the air inside the home far differently than an air conditioner would. The air handler uses a component called the blower that pushes the conditioned air into the home. Air handlers are often referred to as the air terminal. An air terminal consists of three major parts; one is the coil, another is the air filter, and the last is the blower. The coils are the component used to cool the air down. The filters capture the particles that are in the indoor air and the blower helps push or circulate the air throughout the home. Air handlers reuse the inside air of the home.

Air Conditioner Basic Working Principle

Air conditioners are located on the outside of the home because, unlike air handlers that use the air inside the home which in a sense reuses the air, an air conditioner uses the air from outside. Most people assume an air conditioner uses the air inside the home like an air handler does. This is a common misconception. Air conditioners use the outside air, cooling it down as it passes through the coils. The coolant changes from a liquid to a gas as the cooler air begins circulating into the home, the return vent sucks the same air within the home passing through the coil system and again turns the indoor warmer air back into a liquid. It is a fascinating process which almost seems magical. Air handlers use its coil system similarly. However, it reuses the same air within the household. Most prefer air conditioners because it helps circulate fresh air into the home where air handlers recycle the same air in the home which can make the home seem stagnant, especially when the fans are off or the proper types of fans, if any, are not within the house at all.

Emergency Air Conditioner Repair & More in Douglasville, Newnan, Dallas, Carrollton & West Atlanta Georgia

Both air conditioners and air handlers obtain the desired result of cooling down your home during those hot summer months. Whichever one you may prefer will be up to you. Keep in mind, they both require filters to be changed and they both have similar costs. If you need help maintaining your HVAC system or you are in need of repair due to an unknown problem New Start Heating & Air can keep you cool all summer long and warm in the winter. Contact New Start Heating & Air today for all your HVAC system needs.