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Tuckers Air Conditioning, Heating & Plumbing Blog

What Happens if Your Air Conditioner is the Wrong Size

Just because an air conditioner can physically fit into a space in your home, doesn’t mean that it’s actually sized properly to service it. The size of an air conditioner has a big effect on how efficient it is, along with a lot of other factors. If you install an air conditioner that is not sized properly for your home, you are setting yourself up for a whole range of problems down the road. Let’s take a look at what happens if your air conditioner is not properly sized.

Oversized

The main issue with air conditioner size is that all air conditioners are designed to operate in cycles. The system will generate a lot of output for a set amount of time, to get the temperature properly adjusted. Then, it will shut off save to make minor adjustments here and there. If the air conditioner in your home is too large, it will generate too much output to complete a full cycle. The thermostat will shut down the system before it can cycle completely, a problem appropriately named short cycling. Short cycling puts the system under an immense amount of strain, leading to more problems and shortening the overall lifespan of the air conditioner.

Undersized

An undersized air conditioner is too small to properly cool the home in which it is installed. This forces the system to stay on for far longer than it was designed to, resulting in the same issues as if the air conditioner was too large. The system will experience ever-mounting problems, and will not last as long as if it were properly sized. If you want to get the most return on investment for your air conditioner, you need to make sure that it is properly sized.

Tuckers Air Conditioning, Heating & Plumbing offers comprehensive air conditioner installation services throughout Gaithersburg, MD.

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