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Most cars come with a recirculation button, which looks like the outline of a car with a curved arrow inside it. When pressed, this button will do exactly what its name suggests; it will recirculate the air from your car’s air conditioning system. If you’ve ever wondered when exactly to push this button, check out the following guide.
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When should you press it?
According to World Class Auto Repair, the best time to recirculate your car’s air is in hot summer temperatures. Doing so will cool down your cabin as much as possible since the same air will keep going through the A/C system and get gradually colder. Plus, if you have seasonal allergies, it will prevent more pollen from entering the cabin and accordingly make for a more comfortable driving experience.
When you don’t press the recirculation button, your car will pull hot air from outside. This will mean that your A/C will have to work harder to keep cooling the air. Not only will this put extra stress on your A/C compressor, but it will decrease your fuel economy.
When shouldn’t you press it?
On paper, it sounds great to recirculate your car’s air in cold winter temperatures as well since the same air will keep moving through the heater and warm up the cabin faster. However, using the recirculation button in the winter can actually be dangerous. By keeping the hot air inside your car, it will also trap the humidity inside, and this can lead to foggy windows that reduce your visibility on the road.
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If your car doesn’t come with a recirculation button, you may have a newer model that automatically switches between using fresh air and recirculating the air. However, if your car does have one, be sure to only use it on hot days to have safe and comfortable rides.
Amanda Drago lives in West Chester, Ohio with her wonderful family, which includes her adorable dog, Coco. Amanda recently graduated from Miami University with degrees in both marketing and creative writing. However, if she was ever forced to change career paths, she imagines that she would train dogs for movies. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, writing, and watching Netflix. She also has a special place in her heart for theatre and purchases tickets to as many shows as she can. See more articles by Amanda.