[mrpoopie]

Hey everyone,

I had a company come check out my A/C. They said that the indoor evap coils were dirty and needed to be cleaned since the outdoor units seemed to be running fine, and because he saw dust on my intake registers. The only thing he did that day was add 2 lb. of refrigerant to my upstairs unit since he said it needed it.

Since I didn't want to pay $475 to clean each coil, and I was rather skeptical of his diagnosis since he didn't even bother checking my indoor handlers, I took a look at the evap coils myself and they seem rather clean. The bottom of the evap coils (return side?) on both units had a little bit of dust, but it didn't seem like there was enough to need a cleaning.

I have attached some pictures of both evap coils. Does it look like they need to be cleaned?

http://s7.photobucket.com/albums/y278/abcheng/hvac/down/

Thanks in advance.

 

[hennyh]

They look pretty good to me!! Just keep the filters changed and check again in a year and enjoy the $475 you just saved.

I would be concerned about the refrigerant though. If refrigerant really "needed" to be added then your system has a leak. (assuming it was charged correctly to begin with and the techs evaulation was correct)

 

[mrpoopie]

They look pretty good to me!! Just keep the filters changed and check again in a year and enjoy the $475 you just saved.

I would be concerned about the refrigerant though. If refrigerant really "needed" to be added then your system has a leak. (assuming it was charged correctly to begin with and the techs evaulation was correct)

Thanks a lot for the reply ! Yeah, I was concerned about the unit needing 2 lb of refrigerant. Should I call the company back and have him recheck my system? The original problem was that, the upstairs unit doesn't get as cold as it should.

 

[pirateo]

He didn't even visually inspect your coil and assumed it needed cleaning? Wow, I don't think I would have that same company come back out again if that's the case.

Your coil looks very clean to me.

 

[SKIP4661]

I wouldn't have that company back out. If you do I'll be willing to bet they will find a problem that will require a new system. If it is working ok I would let it slide.

 

[mrpoopie]

He didn't even visually inspect your coil and assumed it needed cleaning? Wow, I don't think I would have that same company come back out again if that's the case.

Your coil looks very clean to me.

Yea, the coils look clean to me. He said it was dirty since I never changed my filters, but I told him I change it every season.

 

[mrpoopie]

I wouldn't have that company back out. If you do I'll be willing to bet they will find a problem that will require a new system. If it is working ok I would let it slide.

It works, but not as well as it seems like it should. I don't know if it's simply because the upstairs unit is mounted in the attic, but the downstairs unit runs much colder. However, both units can't seem to keep up with the temperature outside even at night.

 

[pirateo]

Did he clean off your condenser coils?

 

[mrpoopie]

Did he clean off your condenser coils?

Nope, he said the outdoor units were in good shape. Are the condenser coils easily accessible ?

 

[Plumber101]

Condenser coils are easy to clean and you will be surprized how much dirt/lint/cotton you will get out.

Any idea on what the pressures were?

 

[mrpoopie]

Condenser coils are easy to clean and you will be surprized how much dirt/lint/cotton you will get out.

Any idea on what the pressures were?

I'm guessing there is an access panel to the condenser coils?

I bought this stuff to clean my evap coils with. Will they work on condenser coils as well?

I have no idea what the pressure of the system was, but I'm guessing the hvac company checked it to make sure it was within the right range.

 

[hennyh]

I'm guessing there is an access panel to the condenser coils?

Not always. On my system I shut off power, move the fan out of the way and then backflush the condensor coils with a low pressure garden hose.

(No need for more elaborate methods if done annually)