A compressor is one of the main components/parts of an air conditioner. Its function is to increase the pressure and temperature of the refrigerant (gas) before sending it to the condenser coil where it loses heat to the surrounding air and in the process turns to its liquid state.
After the refrigerant absorbs heat from the indoor air, it evaporates and flows to the compressor as a low-pressure gas. The compressor turns it into a high-pressure superheated gas before sending it to the condenser coil where it dissipates the heat to the surrounding and turns back to its liquid state.
To really understand how an air conditioner compressor works, you also need to understand how the entire air conditioning system works. Luckily for you, I have a detailed post on that here.
Before diving deeper into the different types of air conditioners compressors and how they work, let us first look at some basics about AC compressors in general.
There are 5 types of air conditioner compressors. These are:
- Reciprocating compressors
- Scroll compressors
- Screw compressors
- Rotary compressors
- Centrifugal compressors
Whenever a homeowner has a faulty AC compressor, their dilemma is usually whether it is worth it to replace just the compressor or the whole outside unit.
So what should you do?
If your AC compressor is still under warranty, you can replace just the compressor since it will not cost you anything, apart from labor charge. However, if the compressor is no longer under warranty, replacing the entire outside unit is the best decision.
The average cost of replacing an AC compressor is $1200 including labor. The cost can however be as low as $700 or as high as $3400 depending on size, brand, location, type among other factors.
AC compressor failures are mainly caused by too much or too little refrigerant which puts unnecessary strain on the compressor, resulting in overheating. The compressor will also be damaged if the refrigerant doesn’t fully evaporate inside the evaporator and enters it in its liquid state.
The size of an AC compressor is vital. An under-sized compressor will need to run all the time resulting in overheating and premature failure while an oversized compressor will overcool the air in your house and also turn off too soon.
A properly-sized and well-maintained air conditioner compressor will last for up to 15 years or even-longer if it is well-suited for your area’s climate. Wrongly-sized compressors and those that are not regularly maintained will of course not last that long.
How Does and Air Conditioning Compressor Work?
You could say that the compressor is the heart of the air conditioner. Its functions just like the heart of a human body.
For an air conditioner to cool the air inside your house, a refrigerant has to be circulated between the inside and outside of the house. Copper tubes are used to make the system a closed loop.
A refrigerant is a fluid ideally with a low boiling point. That means that the fluid is able to turn to its gas state easily and also turn back to the liquid state just as easily.
Central and ductless (mini-split) air conditioners have an indoor and outdoor unit. The indoor unit is where the evaporator coil is located while the outdoor unit comprises of the condenser coil and the compressor.
Packaged air conditioners like window and portable air conditioners have all the components in one unit.
When the refrigerant enters the evaporator coil inside the house, it is usually in it is liquid state, meaning it is quite cold. The refrigerant cools the hot indoor air by absorbing its heat and in the process evaporates to its gas/vapor state.
A low-pressure high-temperature refrigerant gas then enters the compressor unit. But why do we need the compressor in the first place?
The compressor increases the pressure of the refrigerant, allowing it to move through the condenser coils, where it will discharge the heat it absorbed from the house.
In thermodynamics (heat transfer) heat can only move from a point of high concentration to a point of low concentration (like from the fireplace to your skin and not vice versa).
Although the refrigerant coming from the house is hot, the outside air is equally hot. That is where the compressor comes in.
When you compress a gas, its pressure will definitely increase but that is not the only thing that happens. Its temperature increases as well.
An air conditioner compressor therefore compresses the refrigerant and in the process raises its temperature. That creates a temperature differential between the refrigerant and the outside air.
The refrigerant leaves the compressor and enters the condenser coil as a high-pressure superheated gas.
As the refrigerant moves through the condenser coil, a fan blows air over the coils which aids in the transfer of heat from the refrigerant to the surrounding. The shell of the condenser unit has metal fins similar to those of a car radiator to help in the dissipation of heat to the surrounding.
That is the main reason the air around the outside AC unit is always hot.
By the time the refrigerant is exiting the condenser coil, it will have turned back to its liquid state and ready to go back to the evaporator coil and remove more heat from indoor air.
The cycle goes on and on until the air in your house is sufficiently cooled. And basically that is how an air conditioner compressor works.
Types of Air Conditioner Compressors
The following are the 5 types of air conditioner compressors and how they work:
1. Reciprocating Compressors
These compressors work just like a combustion engine. They use a piston and a cylinder and are powered by a motor connected to a crankshaft.
When the piston moved down, the refrigerant is sucked inside the cylinder and as the piston is moving up, the refrigerant is compressed and pushed into the condenser coil.
Depending on your needs, you can get a compressor that has 2, 4 or even 8 cylinders. Reciprocating cylinders have been used for a long time in residential AC units but modern ACs are favoring scroll compressors.
2. Scroll Compressors
As I mentioned above, scroll compressor are being preferred now more than reciprocating compressors. They are reliable and precise, and therefore more efficient in their working.
A scroll compressor is made up of 2 scrolls where one is stationary while the other one is free to rotate.
The refrigerant enters channels founds between the two scrolls but as it is swirled by the rotating scroll, the channels become smaller in size resulting in compression of the gas.
The refrigerant leaves through the center of the 2 scrolls as a high-pressure superheated gas before entering the condenser unit.
3. Screw Compressors
As a homeowner, you will not have this type of compressor in your residential AC system. It is made for use in buildings where large amount of air needs to be cooled like factories or office blocks.
Screw compressors comprise 2 helical rotors which pull the refrigerant from the compressor intake to the outtake. As the refrigerant moves inside the 2 rotors, the spaces become increasingly smaller, which is what results in the compression of the gas.
4. Rotary Compressors
Rotary compressors are made up of one or more blades which are mounted on a shaft inside a cylinder. The shaft is then positioned off-center inside the cylinder.
The design of the shaft and blades inside the cylinder ensures that the refrigerant intake has a big space between the shaft and the cylinder while the outtake has a small space.
As the shaft rotates, the blades move the refrigerant from the intake to the outtake where it is compressed and sent out to the condenser coil.
5. Centrifugal Compressors
Centrifugal compressors increase the velocity/kinetic energy (pressure) of the refrigerant as it flows through an impeller. They have few moving parts and are made to cool large amounts of air.
Basically, as the impeller discs rotate rapidly, the refrigerant is sucked to the center of the impeller where its velocity increases and is compressed inside the housing before being discharged to the condenser coil.
Main Reasons for AC Compressor Failure
Unfortunately, AC compressors are prone to premature failures. Failures in AC compressors are caused by several reasons which if avoided can make the compressor last for a long time.
The following are the main causes of failure in air conditioner compressors:
1. Too Much or Little Refrigerant
If your refrigerant is leaking or if the HVAC technician did not charge the system with enough refrigerant in their last service, you will have insufficient refrigerant in your AC system.
Insufficient refrigerant means that your AC compressor will work harder than it needs to do, to keep cooling your home. At the end of it all, the compressor will overheat and fail prematurely.
Too much refrigerant will also damage the air compressor. As I mentioned, the refrigerant should only enter the compressor in its gas state. Too much refrigerant in the system means that not all of the refrigerant will vaporize and some of it in liquid form will enter the compressor.
2. Frozen or Dirty Coils
The refrigerant needs to move freely inside both the condenser and evaporator coils. If one or both of the coils are blocked, the refrigerant will flow back to the compressor (in its liquid state) and damage it.
The condenser coil is especially susceptible to blockage by dust (since it is located outside) meaning heat from the refrigerant will not be properly dissipated. Ultimately this will result in overheating.
The evaporator coil can also freeze up, meaning that the refrigerant will be unable to absorb heat from the indoor air. Turning off the unit to let the ice thaw might help in this case.
3. Oil Leaks/Contamination
To run smoothly, an AC compressor uses lubricating oils to avoid friction between moving parts. Pump failure or oil leaks can cause oil penetrate areas where only the refrigerant is allowed.
As I mentioned, the compressor is only designed to compress gases and never liquids. Presence of oil inside the compressor will without a doubt result in failure.
Wrap Up
And basically that is how an air conditioner compressor works. If you want yours to last long, make sure that it is periodically inspected (the entire AC system) by a licensed technician.
I hope you enjoyed reading this post.