How Often Should You Clean Your AC Coils?

Air conditioning is a two-part operation. This means injecting both cool breaths of air into your house and pulling out warm air. If your air conditioner’s coils are covered with dust, dirt or other debris, the warm air will not be drained as efficiently. It is important to clean your coils about once per the calendar year to keep your energy costs down and reduce undue strain on your air conditioning unit. For best results, have a professional Ac cleaning service clean your coils until it hits in the warm season.

1. Table of Contents

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   Why Cleaning the coils is Important

Cleaning the coils ensures the efficient heat transfer process. It has been estimated that dirty coils can cause up to 30 percent of your energy use. Grimy evaporator and condenser spindles can also cause other problems. Be sure to keep your coils clean to avoid frozen evaporator coils, overheating your compressor and poor overall cooling performance.

2. How You Can Prevent Dirty Coils

Though the coils themselves need only be thoroughly cleaned about once a year, you may take preventive measures. You will test the air filter about once a month to avoid the build-up on the coils. The filter should be replaced anytime it looks worn out or dirty. An unkempt air filter will fail to remove dust and dirt but will cause it to build upon the coils instead.

Another way to help keep your coils clean is to keep plants and other items on all sides, at least two feet away from the air conditioning unit.

3. How to Clean the Coils

Your evaporator and condenser coils have delicate, very easy to damage fins. For this reason, it is not recommended that the coils be deeply cleaned on their own. Call an HVAC professional to your home for an annual maintenance visit around once a year, ideally before the start of the summer season. Your technician will clean the coils during this visit and will evaluate your cooling system for any other underlying issues. In between annual trips, you can search and remove the coils for large pieces of debris, such as branches. You can sprinkle the coils with a garden hose, too. Just think of first disconnecting your unit from the power source.