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Well, the good news is that it is pretty clean now and the UV light is installed. This is the basement unit from 2006.
Bad news is that it's pretty much done and needs to be replaced. Willing to bet those on here that clearly know more about this than I do would agree. I can see leak stains running down the back already.
I know that you cannot do this everyplace; but has anybody ever tried an electric leaf blower to clean coils? It really works great on computers and I have blown out one refrigerator that I was moving so I had a chance to do it outside. Years of dust go flying instantly. Here is one YouTube video of a computer being blown out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYwbpZa5g0k.
Of course you would not want to blow the dust all over the inside of your house. But for outside coils or units that could be moved outside (like window mounted air conditioners) this can save a lot of time and do a great job. The force of the air is so great that you might not even have to remove every panel.
Um, I don't think that would be a good idea. One, doubt that you could get the needed angle of approach without actually taking the coil out, which would make no sense to not do a proper washing at that point anyway. Two, 200mph wind? Probably not the best of results I guessing for the fragile fins.
Got the upstairs done today. That coil is from 2008, and indeed looks to be aluminum instead of copper. No leaks seen this time. Did have mold on the inside area and was a bit dirtier, and definitely stunk more than the basement one. I finally figured out our upstairs odor situation. When ac was not running, the odor was falling down the handler and out the returns in the house. I really went heavy on the cleaning solution and could see the dirt and stink washing down the fins. I couldn't get the UV light mounted to the area above the coil like I did for the basement unit (not enough sheet metal to properly mount. So I instead put it into the bottom where the blower is located and the 3 returns enter the system. It worked out great!
I am super excited to report that we've finally fixed the musty and stale smoke smell that we were getting upstairs from the previous owner! It's like a whole different home now! It turned out to definitely be the evap coils, especially the upstairs one.
Sorry, not the best pictures for this one. It was TIGHT up there, and August started to show up around 11:45 in the attic! I'm really glad I did this today. I also found a big problem while up there. See the drain outlet in the photo? When I was done and turned on the system while standing there, I got a strong cold breeze on my face. Turned out that a lot of ac air was escaping the case via that drain spot. Basically running the ac into the attic. Some extra aluminum tape around it fixed it!
This project was definitely worth the time this weekend! Good as if removing and washing? Probably not, no way that it could be. But it certainly achieved what I was really hoping for. Also discovered that this UV light technology is no joke. When we do start to replace these systems, an absolute must have for me will be the ability to use UV light inside the evaporator coil, and above it too. I wish I could have put them inside each coil, but just not possible with these older versions.
When you get around to replacing that furnace, make sure the replacement proposal includes the addition of a return air plenum. When duct connects directly to the furnace without a plenum, even a short one, it causes a problem for the air to efficiently enter BOTH sides of the blower wheel. Very sloppy.
BTW, the light in the return provides little benefit.
Um, I don't think that would be a good idea. One, doubt that you could get the needed angle of approach without actually taking the coil out, which would make no sense to not do a proper washing at that point anyway. Two, 200mph wind? Probably not the best of results I guessing for the fragile fins.
The speed/force of the air is proportional to the distance. I have been blowing out our computers for twenty years without problems and the one refrigerator coils I did was cleaner than it had ever been.
Quote:
Originally Posted by NC211
I am super excited to report that we've finally fixed the musty and stale smoke smell that we were getting upstairs from the previous owner! It's like a whole different home now! It turned out to definitely be the evap coils, especially the upstairs one.
Hopefully that does resolve your problem with the stale smoke smell. We found out that it can be more difficult. Humid days release that old smell. If you have any wood that is stained and not painted; that could have absorbed the old smoke and the same with carpeting and drapes. Our windows are stained and if I stick my nose to the middle, where the top and bottom come together; I can still smell smoke after 20 years of no smoking in our house.
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