Dirty Air Conditioning Coils
#1
Dirty Air Conditioning Coils
Approximately one year ago, I replaced the central air/heat system in my 3-bedroom townhouse in the Ft. Lauderdale area of Florida. I replaced the old 2-ton unit with a 3.5 ton Trane. This is a one-piece unit that is situated on the roof of the building. I noticed recently that it was not cooling as effectively as before and called for the company to come check it out. They are telling me that the coils are very dirty because I had the wrong sized filter installed. This is possible, as I have been having trouble finding filters large enough. However, they want to charge me $285 to clean the coils! This seems outrageous considering the unit is only a year old! How dirty could they be?
Any comments would be greatly appreciated!
Any comments would be greatly appreciated!
#3
DIY
I had a similar problem when I moved into my house. The filters were wrong, and the A/C evap coils were almost solid with dust, dirt, pet hair, you name it.
This caused 2 problems. First it seriously restricted air flow. 2nd, it caused any moisture generated by condensation to freeze solid on the coils.
I secured power to the unit. Removed the cover and went at it with a hose and a wire brush. Use the hose to moisten and loosen the dirt, and the wire brush to (gently) scrape off the dirt. Scrape is the direction of the coil vanes, NOT against them.
When the majority of the gunk is off, spray it real good with a mild soap and water solution (Ivory dish soap works good) and rinse with the hose again before it dries.
It's best if you can get at the backside of the coil, and force the dirt out from the opposite direction.
You have to be careful that you don't get the water down into the supply vents, and make sure you don't flatten out any of the coil vanes.
Allow it to dry thoroughly before re-energizing the circuit.
If it's only a thin coating of dust, you may be able to clean it off with a good shop-vac and a brush attachment.
This caused 2 problems. First it seriously restricted air flow. 2nd, it caused any moisture generated by condensation to freeze solid on the coils.
I secured power to the unit. Removed the cover and went at it with a hose and a wire brush. Use the hose to moisten and loosen the dirt, and the wire brush to (gently) scrape off the dirt. Scrape is the direction of the coil vanes, NOT against them.
When the majority of the gunk is off, spray it real good with a mild soap and water solution (Ivory dish soap works good) and rinse with the hose again before it dries.
It's best if you can get at the backside of the coil, and force the dirt out from the opposite direction.
You have to be careful that you don't get the water down into the supply vents, and make sure you don't flatten out any of the coil vanes.
Allow it to dry thoroughly before re-energizing the circuit.
If it's only a thin coating of dust, you may be able to clean it off with a good shop-vac and a brush attachment.