At Mahle Cool Air we take pride in finding and fixing all the issues our customer have with their AC. Often though, the customers problems came about for simple maintenance issues that have been neglected and led to major AC problems or poor performance and high utility bills.
One of the biggest issues for a poorly working central air conditioning system is not changing, or worse, not even having an air filter in the air handler.
Why an air filter is so important for central air conditioners
So what’s the big deal with the air filter anyway? It comes down to how the vast majority of air conditioning systems have been designed. Nearly all air handlers which deliver cold coolant and also absorb heat from the home, have air flowing over a coiled line of coolant.
This coiled tube which contains coolant, is embedded in a honey-comb like structure of very narrowly spaced cooling fins. For proper operation it is essential that air can flow through and around this coil.
As air is drawn over the coil is gets cooled by the coolant and blown into the air vents by a blower. In addition to cooling the air, the air actually heats the coolant in the same way ice melts in a class of water. But also with a cold drink, condensation will form along the coil and when operating properly, will drain away and out of the home.
However if the air flowing over the coil and the finely spaced cooling fins is dirty with dust particles and other common particulate in household air, the dust will begin to build up around both the coil and the blower fan.
Over time the dust will clog up the cooling fins on the coil and prevent air from flowing directly over the coil. Not only does this prevent the air from being fully cooled it causes another issue, the water from condensation does not fully drain away.
During hot days the homeowner will run the air conditioner much harder because the clogged coil is not able to cool the air fully.
As more and more condensation builds up in the dust coating the coil and other AC parts, the coolant which is no longer being warmed by the air will actually get the condensation so cold it will freeze solid.
Once this happens the air conditioner will cease to cool the air at all because air can no longer reach the coil and exchange heat. The only remedy at this point is to shut the AC off and let the ice met away.
Often the issues goes unnoticed for years causing the air conditioner to be run much more often than needed and resulting in much higher electric bills.
The get and keep an older dirty AC back to good running order give Mahle Cool Air a call. We can completely clean out the air handler parts allowing the air to be cooled like new and all that condensation to be drained away. After that be sure to change your air filter each month to keep the air flowing clean and free of dust. If if need some help in this area Mahle Cool Air offers regular maintenance plans to keep your AC running smooth all year long.