The Home Comfort System

Your home comfort system is essential to keeping you warm in the winter and cool in the summer. It also helps protect you from allergens and pollutants year round. A home comfort system is made up of four major components: a thermostat, a furnace, an air conditioner or a heat pump and an indoor air quality system.

How does a home comfort system work?

Starting with the thermostat, the command center for your comfort system, when the temperature inside drops below or rises above the thermostat setting, the thermostat signals your comfort system to kick on or increase power.

In the case of the furnace, whenever the temperature gets too cold, the thermostat starts the fan motor so that the system’s fan can begin drawing room air through vents and ductwork. When air reaches the furnace cabinet, it passes through a filter, air cleaner or other air quality system. It also moves through a heat exchanger, which warms the air. Then, heated air is blown back into ducts and living areas.

During summer months, the furnace is still working, even though it’s not heating rooms or burning fuel. It acts as an air delivery system for the air conditioner, located outside the home.

So how does the air get cooled?

When the thermostat senses the temperature is too warm, it activates the air conditioner compressor, which pumps refrigerant through a loop of piping that runs between the outside air-conditioning unit and indoor cooling coil. As refrigerant passes through the cooling coil, typically installed on top of the furnace, heat is extracted from the indoor air circulating around it. The furnace blower then sends the conditioned air to living spaces through ductwork.

That’s basically how a home comfort system works. Keep in mind, not all systems are created equal. With a Lennox home comfort system, you can enjoy the highest possible degree of comfort, energy efficiency and customizable control.