Maintain Your Air Conditioner - 13 steps

1
For some people, air conditioning may be a
luxury, but for many, it is a necessity. It is
important to keep our air conditioner always in a
good condition considering its benefits for us,
i.e. maintaining suitable humidity in all
parts of a building, freeing the air
from excessive humidity during certain seasons,
supplying a constant and adequate supply of
ventilation, efficiently removing from the
air micro-organisms, dust, soot, and
other foreign bodies, efficiently cooling
room air during certain seasons, heating
or helping heat the rooms in winter, and renewing
and improving air quality
2
Unplug the air conditioner.
Disconnect the power from the unit.
3
Remove the filterand bezel or cover of the unit
if needed.
Remove the filter to expose the cooling coils.
Aditionally, some models require that the front
cover or bezel be removed to allow full access to
the coil.
Usually the cover is secured By screws - some of
which become visible only when the ter is removed.
4
Spray the front coil of the air conditioner
with a cleaning agent designed for this use.
Home Depot and many other home supply centers
and hardware stores sell products expressly for
this particular job
5
These cleaners will help remove odors from
deposits of dirt, mold, mildew, cigar
cigarette smoke, etc. from the coils.
Prevent foam from spraying electrical wires,
controls or other parts.
Foaming type cleaners will work best only when
used as directed.
Use care to see that only the coils are covered
with the cleaner.
6
Clean the filter.
Clean the ter with plain water or replace if
missing.
A clean ter is a must. It is far easier and
cheaper to remove and clean the ter every 15
hours (more or less depending of dust / dirt
levels in the space) than to clean the air
conditioner with a foaming cleansing
If the filter is suspected of contributing to
odors, soak and wash with a small amount of
scented dish soap or laundry detergent.
7
Repeat if necessary.
8
if the air conditioner has been neglected, it may
require a second application to produce cold
air and be free of odors.
In low humidity conditions, it will take longer
to rinse the coils.
wait until the coils are free from foam before
re-applying
If the unit fails to make cool air, it has likely
lost the refrigerant charge or the compressor has
failed.
If the unit makes cool air but fails to make
condensate to wash the coils, it may be due to
low of humidity.
9
Shut the unit off and disconnect power.
10
Inspect the outdoor coils.
11
Clean the outdoor coils if desired.
The outside coils are exposed to rainwater and
may not need cleaning.
If unsure, or in a dusty or dirty area, it may
help to clean them.
Apply foaming cleaner with the untill off. Allow
10-15 minutes for the foaming cleanser to work.
12
Inspect the outdoor coils.
Since no condensate is formed on the outdoor
coil when the unit is run, it will need to be
rinsed manually.
Do not force a direct a stream of water into the
coils, but merely allow the foam to at away as
the water is allowed to ow over the coils.
13
Reconnect power and test.
Set to cooling and adjust thermostat to a
low temperature.
The discharge air should be cold and smell clean.
If not, it is probably time for service or
replacement
14
Know when it's time to get a new one.
If not, it is probably time for service or
replacement
15
Sources
http//www.wikihow.com/Maintain-an-Air-Conditioner
amcoolinc.com