It’s easy to look at your air conditioner as nothing more than a way to provide cool indoor air throughout the year. However, your air conditioner also affects indoor air quality (IAQ). Several factors negatively impact indoor air quality, such as dust, ozone, mold, pet dander, and pesticides.
With that in mind, you might wonder, “Does an air conditioner improve air quality?” As Denver’s professional AC installation experts, we’re here to tell you that the answer isn’t so clear-cut and requires you to consider more than just your AC.
How Do Air Conditioners Work?
Before answering the question, “Does an air conditioner improve air quality?” you must first understand how an air conditioner works. AC systems recycle indoor air, cool it, and circulate the cold air back into your home. Instead of pulling outside air in, your air conditioner uses that air to kickstart the refrigerant conversion process.
Refrigerant is vital to a fully functioning air conditioner because it draws the heat out of hot air in order to produce cool, crisp air. When refrigerant makes its way to the evaporator coil, it turns into a gas, emitting cool air that enters your house through the air ducts and out the indoor vents. Afterward, the compressor pressurizes the gaseous refrigerant, increasing its temperature and releasing it outside. This process is how your AC provides humidity regulation and, ultimately, generates cool air for you to enjoy.
Do Air Conditioners Improve Your Home’s Indoor Air Quality?
Though a common misconception among homeowners, air conditioners themselves are not a one-and-done solution for indoor air quality. Instead, it’s best to think of an AC as a contributing part of your HVAC system. This means pairing it with other systems and components, like air purifiers and clean air filters, to achieve optimal air quality for your home.
For example, air purification systems can aid in the removal of unwanted contaminants in your home by pulling air into the unit, purifying the air to remove pollutants and ferms, and recirculating the clean air back into the room.
Signs That Your Air Conditioner Is Providing Inferior Indoor Air Quality
As a primarily enclosed space, your home is prone to accumulating materials that worsen the air quality inside. In addition to being harmful in their own right, these contaminants can foster an environment for additional allergens. Keep an eye out for these indications that your air conditioner is providing poor air quality to your home.
You Notice Mold and Other Contaminants While Inside
A home with poor humidity and ventilation can quickly become a breeding ground for contaminants, such as mold, that will worsen indoor air quality and affect your overall quality of life. Mold frequently appears in old homes without adequate air conditioning, which can encourage the growth of other pollutants, including:
- Fungi
- Pollen
- Bacteria
- Smoke
Occupants Exhibit Health Issues
You might not even realize that your home has poor indoor air quality, especially in the midst of summer or other times of the year that bring high pollen counts. Symptoms you or other occupants might exhibit while inside a house with deficient ventilation include:
- Itchy eyes
- Dizziness
- Nasal congestion
- Dry skin
- Headaches
- Increased fatigue
On top of being an inconvenience, these signs can also contribute to more serious health risks like pneumonia, breathing problems, and asthma attacks. Children, old adults, and individuals with immune system deficiencies are the most at risk when exposed to in-air pollutants and VOCs (volatile organic compounds).
How To Ensure Your Home’s Indoor Air Quality Remains High
Nobody wants to enter or live in a stuffy home with lousy ventilation. Fortunately, there are several ways to ensure your home produces and retains superior indoor air quality throughout the year.
Remember to Change Your Air Filter Regularly
Despite their simplicity, air filters are integral to your air conditioning system. As their name suggests, these filters collect and filter out harmful materials so your home’s air remains as clean and refreshing as possible. Your air filters likely sit just inside your AC vents. Even if your air conditioner is producing clean air, the air you breathe will only be clean if you regularly swap out dirty air filters for new ones.
When enough allergens and pollutants accumulate, some will inevitably slip through and blow into the rooms of your home. At that point, they effectively become a part of your home’s air and circulate back into your air conditioner, reducing your HVAC system’s operating efficiency and increasing the chance of unpleasant health symptoms for you, your family, and house guests.
You should change your air filter once every three months or so, but feel free to check it more frequently just to be safe.
Keep Your Windows and Doors Closed While the AC Is On
Closing your home off to the outside world helps your HVAC better regulate indoor temperatures and discourages the buildup of outdoor allergens within your home. This preventative measure will keep your air cleaner, especially if you have clean air filters and an air purification system, and reduce the likelihood of contracting harmful illnesses from poor-quality air.
Establish a Maintenance Schedule With Your Local HVAC Contractor
Routine maintenance is always an excellent idea for your air conditioner. When a professional HVAC contractor inspects your air conditioner, they can test your IAQ, offer solutions to improve AC performance, and inform you of any additional services that will improve the efficiency and longevity of your system.
Contact JC Mechanical, LLC for Air Conditioner Services Today
Does an air conditioner improve air quality? As part of a clean, well-maintained HVAC system, it absolutely can! With over 30 years of industry experience, our trained and certified technicians at JC Mechanical, LLC come fully equipped with the knowledge and skills to expertly handle all aspects of HVAC systems, from heat pump installation to AC maintenance and everything in between. Our team is available 24/7 for your emergency HVAC needs.
Call JC Mechanical, LLC at 720-740-6083 to schedule an appointment and receive an estimate today!
Author Bio:
Jimmie Ciccone
Owner of JC Mechanical Heating & Air Conditioning. A small family-owned company with over 30 years of experience dedicated to providing the best service possible to our customers. They guarantee 100% customer satisfaction, and if you aren’t satisfied, then you don’t pay them a dime.