Cleaning heating coils


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Old 12-11-01, 02:07 AM
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Cleaning heating coils

My Lennox electric a/c system is not heating the house. It cools but no heat. A repair man stated my coils were dirty and cleaning them should fix the problem. Unfortunately the cost is @$300-400 dollars for cleaning outside and inside coils. Is this something a DYIer could/should attempt? If so, how is it done.
 
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Old 12-11-01, 04:27 AM
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Cool

Turn the power off to the system, and try a vacuum cleaner.
Sometimes the outside coils are so dirty that it needs a foaming cleaner made especially to break it up to wash it out with a water hose (try that outside, too, but aim to outside the system).
Good Luck!
Mike
 
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Old 12-27-01, 03:58 AM
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Question: Do the coils both heat and cool? What is a heat exchanger do?
 
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Old 12-27-01, 07:16 AM
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You've got a common problem with your a/c. Indoor coils get dirty because people don't change filters often enough. Depending upon how old your unit is and how often you changed the filter, determines how dirty the coil is. Clening then is necessary but the magic word is, how good a job did he really do. Wire brushing for the most part is a waste of time. Using a cleaning solution , without removing the entire coil to the outside, isn't a heck of a lot better, purely because while inside the unit, you don't have the luxury of a garden hose to wash and flush out a coil that is 3,4,5 inchees thick. You say it cools ok but no heat. Don't sound like a dirty coil to me but it certainly could be dirty. My guess is you've got an electric heater problem and cleaning the indoor and outdoor coils ain't gonna cut it. So I suggest you get yourself a licenced a/c technician to come check it out. If the evap is dirty enough to cauise problems, then depending upon the amount and depth of dirt, decide on whether you want to put a bandaid on it or take it outside and fix it right. Unfortunately, the right way is the costliest way but money well spent if its packed with dirt and goo.
 
 

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