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Which most people never heard of and never change.
Not all vehicles have them. Mine is the first one that I ever had a cabin microfilter in. And I do change it when the air starts to get a stale smell that won't go away. Takes about three years before that happens. Sooner in a damp climate.
Which most people never heard of and never change.
While what you say is accurate, believe it or not, many cars do not have one. Some higher end models and imports do, but a decent amount of average cost and American cars/trucks do not.
While what you say is accurate, believe it or not, many cars do not have one. Some higher end models and imports do, but a decent amount of average cost and American cars/trucks do not.
I dont think this is true any longer. I have yet to see a modern car without one. Even my 3 year old Wrangler has one.
Not all vehicles have them. Mine is the first one that I ever had a cabin microfilter in. And I do change it when the air starts to get a stale smell that won't go away. Takes about three years before that happens. Sooner in a damp climate.
By then it's too late. It works just like your home filter. If you wait till it smells, your filter could be so clogged the fan will start pulling junk through the filter and into your core. Then it'll be trapped in with all the moisture and turn to straight mildewy funk that circulates throughout your cabin. While that's happening the fan is wearing itself out pulling a vacuum across a plugged filter.
Old cars didn't have filters so the core itself trapped all the particulates and is why you needed an Autozone Christmas tree air freshener hanging from the mirror to hide the smell of old socks and wet dog.
A much better idea is to just do what the owner's manual tells you to do.
By then it's too late. It works just like your home filter. If you wait till it smells, your filter could be so clogged the fan will start pulling junk through the filter and into your core. Then it'll be trapped in with all the moisture and turn to straight mildewy funk that circulates throughout your cabin. While that's happening the fan is wearing itself out pulling a vacuum across a plugged filter.
Old cars didn't have filters so the core itself trapped all the particulates and is why you needed an Autozone Christmas tree air freshener hanging from the mirror to hide the smell of old socks and wet dog.
A much better idea is to just do what the owner's manual tells you to do.
Not in my case. My nose is very sensitive and I trust it. My owner's manual says to replace it every year, which would be a huge waste. As it is, even replacing the filters at longer intervals than that, they are nowhere near clogged. The average American supposedly drives 15k miles per year. I drive much less than that; the filter isn't being called to use as much as "average."
I dont think this is true any longer. I have yet to see a modern car without one. Even my 3 year old Wrangler has one.
My 2014 F150 doesn't, nor does the 2010 Forester although they were standard on the next level up.
Back to the original question: the Owner's Manual has an entire section or three concerning air conditioning and heating uses, controls and situations. The very first car I ever had with AC, a 1979 Grand Prix, had almost the exact same instructions as my newest, the F150. About the only thing that changed was the controls (from levers to switches and buttons).
Don't think it is possible to purchase a window/wall AC any longer that offers "fresh air" feature, and there is a good reason. If the purpose of running AC is to cool down and dehumidify indoor air, why bring in the same from outside? More to the point doing so also exhausts a portion (even if small) of air you've just paid to cool and remove moisture. Only time don't use the recirculate feature on automobile AC is when driving in very foggy/damp weather. Never understood why couldn't keep interior windows clear even when running AC and or defroster. Turns out needed to switch off the recirculate feature and let some air from outside in.
Not in my case. My nose is very sensitive and I trust it. My owner's manual says to replace it every year, which would be a huge waste. As it is, even replacing the filters at longer intervals than that, they are nowhere near clogged. The average American supposedly drives 15k miles per year. I drive much less than that; the filter isn't being called to use as much as "average."
It's $15 a year. You can't smell a clogged filter until its already in the core. Mine has sand, leaves and pollen leaves in it after 6 months. I don't smell any of that because it's on the other side of the filter. In either case the fan is working harder and your AC is less efficient.
Don't think it is possible to purchase a window/wall AC any longer that offers "fresh air" feature, and there is a good reason. If the purpose of running AC is to cool down and dehumidify indoor air, why bring in the same from outside? More to the point doing so also exhausts a portion (even if small) of air you've just paid to cool and remove moisture. Only time don't use the recirculate feature on automobile AC is when driving in very foggy/damp weather. Never understood why couldn't keep interior windows clear even when running AC and or defroster. Turns out needed to switch off the recirculate feature and let some air from outside in.
Modern HVAC codes actually require you pump fresh air to increase indoor air quality. Modern insulation, caulking standards have made houses so tight, air gets stale. Since the fresh air is through a controlled access point, it can be routed through an exchanger to precool the fresh air from the cooled exhaust air to increase efficiency.
I can't believe I've not considered this until now but when it is 95 degrees out like it was today, doesn't my AC work less when it simply recirculates the cool cabin air versus the outside air? I'm not entirely sure how this feature works, but will my AC actually work better if I use this feature?
Let's says its 100*F outside. Your AC is set to outside air and can drop the outside air that goes through the evaporator coils to a temperature of 78* That is the best it is going to be able to do.
On recirculate the air passing through the evaporator is already cooled down to a degree and the longer you drive the car the greater the effect until eventually air enters the evaporator at, perhaps 70* and exits at perhaps 48*
If your car has been in blazing sun all day and has an interior temperature of 130* you might want to select outside air for the first few minutes.
If you wish to rid the car of smells you might want to select outside air.
If you want to reduce the sound of the blower you can use outside air so you don't hear the blower's intake side. But if you don't need maximum AC or heat just turn the blower down is an option.
For heat or cooling, for dehumidifying, recirculate is more effective (at least once the car has been driven a few minutes in the case of AC) and immediately if looking for heat.
Don in Austin
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