Why is my house so hot??

[StevieC]

Aside from this summer being super humid it's not normally bad enough to warrant an A/C unit running all day long to dehumidify the air.

I hear what you are saying but wouldn't it make more sense to cool the air and have the compressor shut off and just run a dehumidifier to control the humidity if it was a problem?

 

[Al]

Originally Posted By: StevieC

I hear what you are saying but wouldn't it make more sense to cool the air and have the compressor shut off and just run a dehumidifier to control the humidity if it was a problem?


Maybe...but don't forget, they both require a compressor and in the case of the dehumidifier, t it will put heat into the house via the condenser coil. So if its hot outside it might not make sense. Also the House ac unit might have a better EER rating. Again just an opinion. I am not a professional. I'm reasonably savvy though.

 

[StevieC]

I hear you... Just I know my friends parents house in Kentucky has a massive A/C compressor out back of the house and the house is the same size as my parents. The A/C unit kicks in and kicks out at maximum 1 hour and the house is ice cold and it seems that the air is dry even when it's so humid outside it feels like you are breathing water.

I know that humidity in a cool house isn't good because it can freeze up the "A" coil in the furnace but they seem to get by just fine and they have worse humidity there than here...

 

[brianl703]

Under normal circumstances the "A" coil should never get cold enough that it freezes, regardless of the humidity.

 

[StevieC]

Good to know...

 

[brianl703]

If it does, there are three main causes:

(1)Low outdoor temperature
(2)Insufficient airflow
(3)The unit is low on freon

(1) is mainly a problem with AC units that have to operate in the winter, such as for datacenters. There is a "low ambient" kit that can be installed to solve the problem. It's basically a low pressure cutoff switch that turns off the condensing unit's fan.

(2)is often caused by a clogged air filter

 

[StevieC]

Ours is just undersized and runs continuously to try and catch up and never does until the temperature outside drops within 8C of inside.

 

[JimR]

Brian1703, can insufficient airflow also be caused by not having enough return air? My parents house has only one centrally located 14x20 return air grill for the entire house. That return air grill also has a fiberglass filter in it.

Also, aren't heat pumps/a/c units sealed systems? If so, why would they ever need freon added?

I appreciate yours and duaneb's assistance.

 

[brianl703]

Yes, low airflow can be caused by insufficient return air.

If the system is low on freon it has a leak which should be repaired.

 

[JimR]

Thank you brian1703.

 

[Solo2driver]

Oh irony, my home AC is out this evening....85-degree discharge air temp, 84 degree return air temp, 89 degrees off the condenser/fan outside, 90 degrees ambient outside air at 9:30pm. I'm thinking the compressor is not running although the condenser fan is on and blowing, but there was also plenty of junk on the condenser coil that will need to be cleaned off. If my house was not snuggled up with my nextdoor neighbors, I'd pull the cover and start working on it tonight but I prefer not to get shot here in Texas haha.