How Dirty Evaporator and Condenser Coils Affect Your AC
When we hit the mid 90’s in the Phoenix, AZ area a few weeks ago, it felt as if the summer weather had already arrived—but of course, it’s really only just getting started! You’ve certainly been relying on your home’s air conditioning system already (we’ve had our air conditioner running for weeks at our offices located in Mesa), but we have yet to experience the extreme heat that really puts our central cooling units to the test.
You need to make sure that you watch, feel, and listen carefully for any signs that your AC is malfunctioning so you can have repairs done early and reduce the risk of an AC breakdown in the middle of the summer. A very common problem that air conditioners encounter is dust, dirt, and grime buildup on the indoor coil (the evaporator coil) and/or the outdoor coil (the condenser coil).
Why dirt on the coils is a problem
This dirt buildup serves as a form of insulator and blocks airflow the coils need to do their job effectively. It prevents the coils from effectively releasing or absorbing heat, that heat transfer being the very process that keeps you home cool. The evaporator coil draws heat out of the air inside of your home to cool it down, and the condenser coil releases that absorbed heat to the outside. When either coil becomes dirty, it not only will severely cut down the total energy efficiency of the system, something you will notice with increased power bills, it will also have an impact on other components such as fan motors and your air conditioning compressor. If your fan motors or compressor get too hot trying to compensate for the dirty AC coils, the copper windings inside them melt and break…unfortunately this failure has no repair and these components then need to be replaced!
You can take some steps to prevent this from occurring, such as making sure to always change the indoor air filter every 1 to 3 months and keeping mulch and plants clear of the outdoor unit. However, the best defense, as always, is to schedule spring air conditioning maintenance. If you haven’t this yet, give us a call and arrange for maintenance right away.
If you already have dirty evaporator or condenser coils, you shouldn’t attempt to clean them yourself. This might lead to damaging them. Instead, let our repair technicians handle the job using the best professional chemicals, tools and procedures.
For a limited time, Magic Touch Mechanical has a special offer for anyone who would like to try out our award winning service at a discounted rate! Give us a call today if you live in Mesa, Tempe, Chandler, Phoenix, Glendale or surrounding AZ cities!
Call Magic Touch Mechanical today to experience our award-winning customer service first-hand in Phoenix, AZ and the surrounding areas. We look forward to exceeding your expectations!