Brick Plumbing & HVAC

We are a trusted plumber and HVAC company in Frederick, MD. We providing professional plumbing, heating and cooling services to residents and businesses throughout Frederick County.

HVAC is an acronym that stands for Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning. The term HVAC is used to describe a complete home comfort system that can be used to heat and cool your home, as well as provide improved indoor air quality. HVAC can be easily confused with the term AC, but AC simply refers to air conditioning on its own, while HVAC refers to the broader system, which may or may not include an air conditioning unit.

What are the components that make up an HVAC system?

A complete HVAC system has more than one component. In fact, it has multiple units and parts, both inside and outside your home, that all work together doing different jobs to bring you the complete home comfort you need. While there are many different components that can be part of an HVAC system, below are a few of the ones you're most likely to see in your system, plus what they do:

Air Conditioner - An air conditioner cools your home by removing heat and humidity from inside and transferring it outside.

Heat Pump - Contrary to their name, a heat pump can both heat and cool your home. They use refrigerant to absorb, transport, and release heat, and they can reverse the flow of that refrigerant depending on if you need heating or cooling. Heat pumps are powered by electricity, not fossil fuels.

Furnace - Furnaces create heat by burning a fuel source like natural gas or propane. The heat they create is then distributed throughout your home, in order to increase the indoor temperature.

Air Handler - Air handlers circulate both warm and cool air formed by other HVAC units throughout your entire home, in order to reach your desired temperature in every room.

Ductwork - Ductwork is a system of pipes, also known as ducts, that carry and distribute air from units like your furnace, air conditioner, and heat pump.

Thermostat - The thermostat, located inside your home, allows you to control your indoor temperature. When you change the temperature on your thermostat, it signals to the rest of your HVAC system your home needs to be warmer or cooler.

When you find the right combination of these HVAC units (and others!) for your home, it will help ensure your unique temperature and air quality needs are met all year long.

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