Do You Know How Important Your Air Conditioner Filter Is?

By Author: Donald Munn
Total Articles: 2
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When most people think about an air conditioner filter, it is in terms of how efficient they are and how much dust they will stop. These are important things and should be considered when replacing or upgrading your air conditioner filter.

There is another very important job that your air conditioner filter does. It helps to keep dust from collecting on the evaporator coil of your air conditioning system. The evaporator is located inside the air handler and is one of the four main components of any air conditioning system. The air filter is usually located somewhere just before the evaporator coil.

Everyone knows that any dust that passes through the filter ends up back in your living space and can be very irritating to allergy sufferers and anyone else who is sensitive to dust and airborne contaminants.

What most people don't realize is that your air conditioner filter also serves another important purpose. It also prevents the evaporator coil from becoming plugged with dust and reducing the efficiency of the equipment.

This evaporator coil is constructed very similar ...
... to the radiator in a car. Like your car radiator, it will not be able to do its job without proper airflow. I am comparing the evaporator coil to a car radiator because most of us know what a radiator looks like, but an evaporator coil works to cool air as it passes through.

Over time dust collects between the fins of the evaporator coil and can even form a layer on the surface of the evaporator coil fins (like a blanket). This happens over a period of time and can take months and even years to happen.

If your air conditioner develops a problem with ice build up and it was never a problem in the past, there are two probable causes. The evaporator coil is becoming dirty and causing low operating pressures, or you are not changing your air filter often enough.

If you have your air conditioner serviced regularly, the technician should check the coil condition and advise you when it needs to be cleaned. As airflow through the evaporator coil becomes more and more restricted the equipment efficiency begins to decline. This can even cause equipment failure and lead to expensive repairs.

So, cleaner air is not the only benefit you will get from using an efficient air conditioner filter. You will also save money because your air conditioning equipment will perform at a higher efficiency and you will reduce service calls.
Donald Munn has been involved in the air conditioning, ventilation and heating industry for twenty years and shares his experience and insight into furnace filter selection, performance and care at www.furnacefiltercare.com. He also publishes a blog about indoor air quality at home. http://home-air-care.blogspot.com/