Clean Coils Help Your Health and Your Wallet: A Guide from Sacramento’s Premier Commercial HVAC Contractor
Air conditioning coils: you’ve probably heard of them, but may not know their role in your day-to-day life. Read below for an understanding of the role coils play in your indoor air quality, comfort, and business expenses.
Why Are Coils So Important?
Coils are where heat is either removed or added to the space. Both the condenser and the evaporator coils are engineered or “sized” to provide optimum heat transfer as required by the space being conditioned. Optimal heat transfer and system efficiency, however, are determined by how clean the coil surfaces are where the heat transfer takes place.
Cleaning the coils in your air conditioning unit can therefore provide a great benefit both in terms of functionality and monetary savings down the road- and we all like to save money, right?
No One Likes to Breathe Dirty Air
You may not be able to see it with your naked eye, but the air surrounding us can be quite polluted and dirty. The air moving across these coils, in almost all cases, contain dust, dirt, pollen, grease, and moisture. These contaminants settle on the coil surfaces, adversely affecting the coils’ ability to transfer heat- affecting the comfort of your building’s occupants!
As a Sacramento commercial HVAC contractor, Cooper Oates has seen first-hand the effects of ignoring “small” maintenance tasks such as coil cleaning in commercial HVAC units. Read below to achieve a better understanding of the negative effects of forgoing regular coil cleaning and the benefits you could be missing out on.
The Cost of Dirty Coils Adds Up
The cost of operating a dirty air conditioning system is greater than you might suspect. When the coil becomes fouled with dirt and grime, it cannot provide its designed — or, in some cases, even adequate — heat transfer, and that costs you and your business in many ways. As a commercial property owner, you know how important it is to keep your tenants comfortable so your business runs smoothly- so this is crucial.
Dirt and grime insulate the coils, increasing discharge pressures that increase the amperage draw and run time of the compressor and other components, while simultaneously reducing heat transfer capacity. Equipment operating with dirty coils can use more than 30% more energy than equipment with clean coils. You end up paying for more power on equipment that's working harder and harder to get the same or less cooling- what a nightmare!
Dirty Coils Can Lead to 30% Loss of Cooling Capacity
The cost of dirty coils goes beyond just energy use. As dirt and grime collect on the coils, they restrict heat transfer and cause the compressor to work harder. This adds more heat to the system and causes pressure to rise. Rising pressure results in a loss of cooling capacity of up to 30%. A 10-ton system with a 30% loss provides only 7 tons of cooling. This loss of capacity is most noticeable on hot days when cooling is needed the most.
The bad news does not stop there. Higher operating pressures and temperatures caused by a dirty coil reduce the equipment’s life expectancy. The elevated system temperature and pressure leads to the premature breakdown of the compressor’s lubricant, just like running your car to hot and the oil breaks down.
Compressor Failure, Lubricant Breakdown, Acid Formation... Oh My!
In addition, acid formation can occur, leading to acid burnout. Lubricant breakdown and acid formation will seriously compromise the compressor and ultimately will lead to premature catastrophic equipment failure. Compressor failure means no cooling and no cooling means unhappy tenants. Compressor replacement means considerable downtime and cost to the building owner.
Clean coils, a result of a well-planned preventative maintenance agreement for your HVAC system, can reduce the risk of these “expensive” consequences.
Dirty Coils Also Affect Indoor Air Quality
A fouled and dirty evaporator coil creates an excellent breeding ground for bacteria and mold that can impact a building’s indoor air quality. Cleaning, sanitizing, and protecting the evaporator coil and surrounding areas is critical.
In addition to the coils, the condensate pan is prone to the build-up of bacterial slime. As condensate collects in the pan and doesn’t drain properly, it can become a breeding place for harmful bacteria. This build-up can cause odor as well as plugged drains and overflows, which in turn can cause significant water damage. It’s all a nightmare for a building owner hoping to keep occupants happy and comfortable.
The benefits of regular HVAC coil cleaning and preventative maintenance:
• Significant monthly energy savings (why pay for more power than you have to?)
• Peak equipment efficiencies (run the equipment for the least amount of time)
• Enhanced reliability & reduced breakdowns (prevent downtime, damage and unhappy tenants)
• Longer service life (protect this asset and avoid replacement for as long as possible)
• Improved indoor air quality (protect your tenant’s comfort and health)
• Energy conservation (realize savings without sacrificing comfort)
Summing It All Up
Think of it this way: if your car got 30% less gas mileage or your refrigerator lost 30% of its cooling, you would probably see that as a problem that needed immediate attention. Dirty and fouled coils create the same urgency with potentially much more expense at risk. If you’re looking to improve the health of your air conditioning system and reduce energy costs, contact Cooper Oates to receive a customized preventative maintenance agreement for your building’s HVAC system.
Our highly trained and certified technicians place your facility’s efficiency and comfort in the forefront. Our service area extends as far north as Chico, CA, east to Napa, west to Placerville, south to Turlock and in between including: Rancho Cordova, Folsom, Elk Grove, Roseville, Woodland, Stockton, Davis, Yuba City, Auburn, Sutter Creek and Lincoln.
Contact us today to learn more about how we can offer value to your business and provide expert commercial HVAC service that saves you in the long run.