How Does Humidity Affect My Air Conditioner?

If you live in Upper Arlington, OH, you’ve probably dealt with your fair share of humidity. Humidity affects you because when there’s a lot of moisture in the air, it’s hard for your body to keep cool. When you need to escape the humidity outdoors, you go inside to enjoy the controlled environment of an air conditioned room. But did you know that humidity can also affect your air conditioner? If your AC can’t take the humidity either, you may eventually need to call a technician for air conditioning repair.

Your AC doesn’t just keep you cool by blowing cool air into your home; it also removes heat from the indoors and releases it outdoors. Refrigerant continuously cycles through the system, pulling heat from the air via the evaporator coil located inside your home. Outside, the condenser coil helps to dissipate this heat into the air. The evaporator coil also works to reduce the humidity levels indoors. The evaporator pulls in moisture that forms underneath the coil as condensation. It then drips into a condensate pan, which continuously drains via a drainage system.

No Ducts

However, if there is too much humidity in the home, your AC system might not be able to handle it, no matter how advanced it is. If your air conditioner has to work too hard, your system will not be able to handle the workload. It may overheat and break down, or else accumulated condensation might overflow into the air handler instead of draining. Condensate leaks are also a possibility. If these problems occur, you’ll need to call a technician for air conditioning repair.

One solution that can help you to avoid this issue is a whole-house dehumidifier. This works together with your indoor air handler to extract moisture from the air. You’ll feel cooler and your home will feel less stuffy. It will also increase the air quality of your home by reducing airborne allergens and reducing the risk of mold and bacteria growth.

We can install a whole-house dehumidifier or provide air conditioning repair in Upper Arlington, OH, at Quality Air Heating and Air Conditioning. Call us today!