It’s September, and while it’s still warm, it’s time to think about switching gears soon to fall! It’s a great time to clean your air conditioner.
So here’s our handy step-by-step guide on how to clean your A/C unit:
1. Turn off the power. Before you do anything, make sure you shut off the power to your air conditioner. You don’t want to electrocute yourself accidentally! Do this entirely by disconnecting at the outdoor unit (by pulling the plug in the power box) and at the indoor unit (by flipping the breaker in your breaker panel).
2. Clean off the outdoor unit. The first step is to clean up the outdoor unit, which is probably full of dirt, dust, pollen, and other yuckiness. You can use a hose to spray it down, but be careful not to use too much pressure, which could damage the fins on the unit.
3. Clean the inside of the unit. After you’ve got the fins and the outside of the unit clean, it’s time to open it up and clean the inside. This will require a screwdriver (or a cordless drill!!) to remove the screws. (It’s best to put them inside something instead of letting them roll around on the ground and get lost, we know people who have learned that the hard way.) Once the panels are carefully taken off, you can use a soft-bristle brush, if needed, to remove all the dirt and debris that couldn’t be removed with the panels still on. You can also lift the fan blades out of the top of the unit (being careful not to touch the motor) to clean them and the inside of the unit more thoroughly. Use a vacuum with a brush attachment to suck up all the dirt and debris accumulated inside.
4. Put the panels back on in the opposite order of how you took them off, and screw them in place tightly. (But still a clean outdoor unit!) leave all screws loose until ALL panels are on, and only then start to tighten the screws, or else you’ll have a mess on your hands!
5. If at any point you don’t feel comfortable doing this, or if you have any questions, please feel free to give us a call. Give Air Repair Pros a call anytime at 469-333-2474, and we’ll come out to help you right away! We’re happy to step in and do this job instead while working on your system since we know it’s something that makes many Frisco homeowners nervous.
