Converting an Air Conditioner to a Heat Pump

by | Heat Pumps | 6 comments

Converting an Air Conditioner to a Heat Pump
Can I convert my air conditioner to a heat pump?
Yes you can do this if you:

I get this question a lot in my emails and wanted to address it. The time and materials it would take to change an air conditioner into a heat pump are not worth it. You would be better off having a new heat pump installed replacing the old air conditioning unit. For me, or another HVAC technician, this would be a pet project for teaching students how to braze for refrigeration and wire heat pump controls for the proper sequence of operation.

It would be a good lesson in metering devices for air conditioners and heat pumps. It would also be a good lesson in finding all the appropriate parts for the size and model number of the air conditioner equipment.

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TXV or Thermostatic Expansion Valve | Refrigeration for HVAC

by | Refrigeration | 8 comments

TXV or Thermostatic Expansion Valve are used in air conditioners and heat pumps to meter refrigerant.

TXV or Thermostatic Expansion Valve

The TXV or Thermostatic Expansion Valve is preferred over other refrigeration metering devices because it only allows a specified amount of refrigerant to flow based on demand. Any type of refrigeration metering device creates a pressure drop in the refrigerant and with a pressure drop of the refrigerant a temperature drop also occurs.

This temperature is necessary to drop the refrigerant down to temperature lower than ambient temperatures inside the structure being cooled. This allows the refrigerant to absorb the heat contained in the air passing over the evaporator coil. (more…)