To meet the extreme demands of cooling your home on hot summer days, your air conditioning system needs to be durable and reliable. Over time, however, even the toughest HVAC systems can experience damage. Oftentimes, the problem begins with one of the air conditioner’s two coils: the evaporator coil and the condenser coil.
When this occurs, many homeowners choose to replace the damaged coil. However, this can lead to further damage if the replacement coil doesn’t match the original. Today, The Ice-Man discusses why you should avoid having mismatched AC coils.
How Your Evaporator and Condenser Coils Work
The evaporator coils are found inside your AC’s indoor unit, while the condenser coils are located inside the outdoor unit. The evaporator coils absorb heat from the air inside your home. The heat then travels along the refrigerant lines until it reaches the condenser coils. After that, the condenser coils release the heat into the outside air. Both evaporator and condenser coils work together to remove heat and moisture from your home.
For this reason, manufacturers specifically design the two coils to match. When one of the coils reaches the end of its lifespan, some homeowners wrongfully assume that they can improve the performance of their unit by installing a coil with a higher capacity rating. Unfortunately, this only leads to bigger problems, such as a damaged system and high energy bills.
Why Your Evaporator and Condenser Coils Should Match
While mismatched AC coils are more affordable, experts don’t recommend following this route. Here are some reasons why you have to make sure your evaporator and condenser coils match:
- Indoor and outdoor units work as a set. To operate efficiently and keep your home comfortable, the indoor and outdoor units of your AC system should be compatible. If you combine a specific indoor unit with an outdoor unit it wasn’t designed to work with, the system’s longevity and efficiency may be compromised.
- It helps keep monthly energy bills from increasing significantly. If your evaporator and condenser coils don’t match, the smaller coils won’t be able to keep up with the capacity of the larger coils. This forces your system to work twice as hard. Take note that the longer your system runs, the more energy it eats up, which will cause your monthly bills to skyrocket.
- You may void your warranty. Most manufacturers won’t warranty a unit unless it’s part of a matched system, which is why many HVAC experts discourage mismatched AC coils. This is because manufacturers specifically design both coils to work together. If one is replaced with a different size, it’s likely your unit will suffer from system failure.
If you need assistance replacing your evaporator or condenser coils, our HVAC professionals at The Ice-Man can help. Our technicians offer top-quality heating and cooling services to keep your system in great shape. Call us at (609) 466-9020 or fill out our contact form to set up an appointment.