I saw my neighbor outside yesterday with a normal garden hose and what looked like a weed killer sprayer.   Curious, I asked her what was going on.  She said she was going to "clean" her air conditioner. I  walked away more confused than I was before.  Is this something that needs to be done?  How do I do it?  Why do I need to clean something that does not seem to have dirt on it?  Please help!

Cleaning your outside air conditioner (Condensing Unit Coil) once a year will save you money, and make your house cooler at the same time!   Most people do not realize the unit needs to be cleaned, or how simple the task is.  When a condenser coil is dirty, the dirt prevents the coil from releasing the heat that it has removed from your home.  Imagine sitting in the sun on a 95 degree day wrapped in a thermal blanket.  The blanket will keep the heat trapped around your body, and not allow you to sweat and relieve the heat.  The same is true with a dirty coil on your condenser, the dirt acts as a blanket that blocks the heat from leaving the coil.  So what do we do?

 As you already know, the first two things you need are a water hose and a sprayer.  We sell both items in a professional grade here at BR Supply (CAM 22873) and (WAL 128430).   Before you begin, you must first turn off the electrical breaker at your unit.  Water and electricity do not mix!   Once you have the sprayer and water, you need to get the cleanser, which does mix with water!  We sell several different types of coil cleaner at BR Supply.   The most popular is the DIV Pro-Blue. 

This cleaner is acid based and foams as it cleans your coil.  Follow the directions on the cleaner and mix the chemical with water.  Next, spray the coil with clean water from your hose to get rid of obvious loose debris.  After the initial water spray, use your garden sprayer to soak the coil with the coil cleaner mixture.  Leave the coil cleaner on the unit for 15 minutes to allow the foam to penetrate and clean inside the coil.  Lastly, rinse the coil off again to remove all the dirt from the inside of the coil. 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Other popular coil cleaners we stock include: DIV Pro-Green (a rinse free cleaner that is not acidic), DIV Pro-Kleen (a stronger, high-acid based cleaner).   For smaller units and window hung Air Conditioners, we advise you use the aerosol based DIV 358-20, which is 19 oz. and does not require mixing.  Once the coils are clean, turn back power to the unit and prepare to have a more efficient and better performing unit.

As always, if you have any questions, call or stop by your nearest BR Supply store.  Click the "Locations" tab to find the store closest to you.