So what is a condenser and what does it do?

The condenser is the area where the heat dissipation occurs. The condenser, in many cases, will look very much like the radiator you have in your car as the two have very similar functions. The condenser is designed to radiate heat. It is usually positioned in front of the radiator in the engine bay, but in some cases, due to aerodynamic improvements to the body of a vehicle, its location may differ. Condensers must have good air flow whenever the system is in operation. On rear wheel drive vehicles; this is usually accomplished by taking advantage of your existing engine's cooling fan. On front wheel drive vehicles, condenser air flow is supplemented with one or more electric cooling fan(s).

The hot compressed gasses are sent from the compressor into the top of the condenser, here they are cooled off. As this gas cools, it condenses and moves through the bottom of the condenser as a high pressure liquid.

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