• Real Estate Professionals
  • Service Providers
First American Home Warranty
  • Request Service
  • Sign In
  • 888.875.0533
  • Get a Quote
  • Menu
Request Service Sign In

Homeowner

  • Overview
  • Why Buy a Home Warranty
  • What's Covered
  • How to Request Service
  • Home Warranty Reviews
  • Get a Quote
  • Home Appliance Warranty Coverage
  • Budget Protection
  • What is a Home Warranty?

Service Provider

  • Overview
  • Why Join Our Team
  • Home Warranty Network 101
  • Service Provider Testimonials
  • Service Provider Application

Real Estate Professional

  • Overview
  • Why Choose First American
  • Sample Coverage
  • Locate Your Area Manager
  • CRES Home Warranty
  • Real Estate Testimonials
  • Marketing Materials

Resources

  • About Us
  • Blog
  • Contact Us
  • Case Studies and Testimonials
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Home Maintenance Tips
Menu

Sign In / Register

  • Email Address is required.
  • Password is required.
Register Forgot Password
Request Service Sign In
  • Blog Home
  • Budget Smart
  • Home Care
  • Home Maintenance
  • Home Warranty
  • Homeowner Tips
  • Lifestyle
  • Real Estate
  • Archives
Heating and Air Conditioning Glossary
Homeowner Tips

Heating and Air Conditioning Glossary

Do you feel like you’re trying to understand a foreign language when learning about your home’s heating, ventilation, and cooling (HVAC) systems? Here is a glossary of common terms to help.

AFUE

The Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency is a measurement of a heating system’s efficiency in turning fuel into energy. An 85 percent AFUE rating means that 85 percent of the fuel the system uses is turned into energy.

Air handler

The indoor part of a split heating and/or cooling system that circulates air.

Boiler

A boiler is part of a heating system that heats water to provide steam or hot water for heating. The steam or heated water is distributed through pipes to radiators or baseboards.

BTU

Stands for British Thermal Unit.  It is a measurement of heat energy. For heating systems, the BTU number measures the heat output; for air conditioning systems, BTU measures the cooling capacity.

Central air conditioning

A system where air is cooled at a central location and then distributed throughout the house using ductwork. Most residential central air conditioning systems are split systems, so that part of the system is indoor and part is outdoor.

Condenser

In a central air conditioning split system, this is the part of the unit that is outside the home. The condenser’s job is to release the heat accumulated by the indoor portion of the air conditioner.

Condensate line

As your air conditioners’ condenser cools heated air, it produces condensation. This water drips down a through a drain line. The condensate line can get clogged, causing water to overflow.

Ductless mini-split

These cooling systems have indoor and outdoor units, but do not require ducting. Single-zone systems are designed for one area and have one indoor air handler and one outdoor condenser unit. Some ductless mini-split systems let you have up to four indoor units for cooling multiple areas in your home.

Ductwork

The system of ducts (metal or plastic) that distribute air from your central heating or cooling system throughout your house.

Evaporative cooler

Also known as a swamp cooler, works by cooling air through the evaporation of water. This type of cooling works best when the humidity is 60% or less, such as in the southwestern U.S., where the air is hot and dry.

Evaporator coil

In a central air conditioning system, this resides indoors with either the furnace or air handler. It holds the chilled refrigerant that is used to draw out the heat from the air in your home.

Furnace

A heating system that heats air and distributes it through the house using ducts. Often combined with central air conditioning.

HVAC

Stands for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning.  This term is typically used to describe home heating and cooling systems.

Heat pump

Handles both heating and cooling. Heat pumps transfer heat between your home and the outside to provide both heating and cooling. They work best in moderate climates where temperatures do not regularly fall below freezing.

Packaged system

Also called an all-in-one system. All parts of the system are contained in one outdoor unit that is usually installed on a roof or next to the home on a slab.

Refrigerant

Used in an air conditioning system to absorb heat from indoor air.

R-22 refrigerant

Also called Freon. The production and use of R-22 is being phased out, as it depletes ozone. Other, more environmentally friendly types of refrigerant are replacing R-22.

SEER/SEER2

Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio 2 measures the efficiency of heating and air conditioning systems. A higher SEER/SEER2 rating means that the system is more efficient.

Split system

The most common type of residential HVAC system, it has two main components: an indoor component (the air handler), and an outdoor one (the condenser).

Swamp cooler

See evaporative cooler.

More Helpful HVAC Resources

  • How Does AC Work?
  • Spring Maintenance for Your Air Conditioner
  • First American Big HVAC Home Warranty Coverage
This article is about...
  • Air conditioners
  • HVAC
  • Checklists
Everything to Know About AC Replacement: Cost to Timing
Homeowner Tips

Everything to Know About AC Replacement: Cost to Timing

Dishwasher Not Draining? Here's How to Fix It
Homeowner Tips

Dishwasher Not Draining? Here's How to Fix It

Which Way Should a Ceiling Fan Turn?
Homeowner Tips

Which Way Should a Ceiling Fan Turn?

Couple shopping online

Get a personalized home warranty quote

It only takes a few minutes

View home warranty plans that could save you hundreds to thousands of dollars each year.

Get Started Today

Popular Articles

water heater temperature
What's the Best Temperature for Your Water Heater?
Finding a home's shutoffs
Where to Find Your Home's Shutoff Valves
Ceiling fan direction
Which Way Should Your Ceiling Fan Turn?
When to change water filter
How Often Should You Change Water Filters?
Home warranty repair
What is a Home Warranty?
Change dishwasher filter
Does Your Dishwasher Have a Filter?
garbage disposal tips
What Can Safely Go in the Garbage Disposal?
Grout cleaning guidance
Guide to Care, Cleaning, and Maintenance of Grout
Changing air filter
How to Change the Air Filter in Your HVAC System
Converting your garage
Garage Conversion Ideas

This website uses cookies and similar technologies to manage your sessions, manage content, and improve your website experience. To learn more about these technologies, your options, and about other categories of personal information we collect through this website and how we may use it, please see our privacy policy. This notice is effective for your use of this website for the next 14 days.

  • Home
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Accessibility
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy
  • Sitemap
© 2023 First American Home Warranty Corporation and its licensed subsidiaries. All rights reserved.