You're in for an adventure. You'll keep getting HVAC recommendations, and you'll keep watching them one after the other. They're highly entertaining for some reason even if you know nothing about it.
Welcome to the HVACR black hole. I stumbled upon a channel a week ago and have been watching various HVACR creators non stop. I have no idea why, I work in IT.
Being one year done of HVACR school I just love your videos That Condenser sprayer from Milwaukee is the neat I will need to get one now!! Thank you for posting your videos
Ted, a good tip for when you foam a coil, if you are trying to get the foam all the way through, start at the bottom and work your way up, that way you have a better idea what has been foamed working up.
One of the few things I was told about the air handler drain was to vacuum it with a shop vac after every season. I’m able to draw about a cup of watering in the fall . Every year my A/C mechanic checks my drain & he says it’s always clean & the pan is dry every spring. My air handler is in a crawl space that I can’t fit in because I’m freakishly large. So, I let a pro handle that for me. On a foot note. I have a 2-1/2 ton Trane 14 seer condenser (installed in 2004) for my central air. I had my A/C mechanic install a hard start capacitor in it last year so I can start it with my Honda EU7000is generator. After the cold load pickup I was able to keep it running by dropping the thermostat to 60 degrees. Then slowly pick up my entire house with the same generator. Just so everyone knows? You can stay comfortable in a power outage & keep your family safe. Of course you’ll need an electrician to wire your generator to your house electrical system to pull that off.
Give the homeowner photos of coil wearing their winter blanket. Maybe drive the mower in opposite direction, so discharge away from house. Maybe someone blows off the patio once a week and directs trash toward unit.
Yeah, luckily at my house, I have a patio in the back and the HVAC unit is no where near where the grass is cut. Only thing that get in it sometimes is those damn maple leaf seeds that spin like a helicopter! I have my HVAC company clean out the top of the unit once a year as well as all the other PM they do.
Thank you so much for the basic demonstration! Things like this is what a normal person can do but I see ut as somewhat of a hands on in your case. It just seems like you are a great leader and it shows, vary informative!
Thank you for sharing your knowledge and time. I plan on doing some HVAC cleaning tomorrow on my unit. Thanks again and have a great day. I’m looking forward to your next video.
I'm happy to see you washed the coil correctly from inside the unit out. I cringe when I see techs wash from outside and push all that dirt further in the unit and just cuz the outside looks clean they think it is. Doing it proper takes 5-10 minutes longer but saves you from having to go back and service a unit that most of the times can be taken care of off 1 visit.
the ultra-fine filters really are a mixed bag, they cut down air flow a bit but for those of us with severe allergies and pets they can make life MUCH less miserable. Oddly its not linear how much static-pressure increase they are vs how fine they filter, some finer are less restrictive. There's a few good videos on RU-vid people testing that, ProjectFarm did one recently.
My XR14 with ECM Fan Motor and Air Handler gets a thorough Coil cleaning using professional cleaner each season. Also have a full mesh cover. It runs like a champ. Almost 💯 the way you did except I vacuum it out 1st and clearing all drain ports. I use interior safe spray on air handler. It has NEVER looked like that Unit! Great Job. Upkeep matters.
I made myself an ugly sweater for this years Christmas party with the stuff i pulled off a chiller recently. Literally about half inch thick all around the outside not including the inside. Could have used it for home insulation.
I also have a Trane unit similar to the one you cleaned the coil on, When I first got it every spring from mid-May to July I would have to wash it out several times because of the cottonwood seed plugging it up, 3 years ago I wrapped the sides of the entire unit with window screen mesh, now every few days I rinse off the mesh and it only takes a few minutes. That was a real pain in the ass!
Great video! It will be even better if you could explain what detergent liquid you were using to clean up the condenser unit and what liquid you used to clean out the water line? Thanks!
I like using Nu-Calgon’s Coil Gun. They have an Attachment that goes on it so you can reach down through the Fan Grill and Spray the Coil, without trying to balance the Fan Assembly. I also made an attachment so I can Reach down and Rinse the Coil off using the Nu-Calgon Nozzle. Also I use the Nu-Calgon De- Foamer. A couple drops down in the Condensing unit, the foam is killed, for an easier rinse. I got a lid for my Five Gallon Bucket, put some fittings on it, and put it in line with my Wet-Vac, so I’m not sucking crap, directly into my Wet-Vac. Learned my lesson on that when I sucked a dead rodent into my Vac. and was smelling it for weeks, even after many cleanings of the Vacuum. Retired after 43 Years, in the Trade.
Ted, watched many of your videos and learned a lot. In one of your videos, you seemed indicating that you are not a fan of Goodman units. I wonder what is your opinion on Payne brand? Thanks so much for posting these valuable videos and the way how you treat your customers with honesty. Eager to hear your opinion about Payne units.
Looks like a dryer vent to the left on the condenser. Sure is a lot of moisture gathering on the coils to collect this much dust. Good job cleaning and again explaining those high MERV filters!
You made it look pretty easy Ted! The only thing I could come up with is possibly utilizing the SpeedClean coil shot wand to get thru the fan grill without removing the top to clean the coil from inside out. Sometimes it is more of a pain to navigate that wand with the top in place tho! Ha! Other than that, maybe a funnel to pour your drain cleaner into the drain. I use an old laundry detergent bottle. It has the convenient little pour spout built right in. That vacuum attachment is a game changer. I bought one after I saw one of your videos years ago and love that thing. Simple yet super useful! This comment is in regard to your giveaway.
That's amazing. At our house it's cotton from the cottonwood trees that we have to clean off of our unit once a year. We mow all around it but we never see grass stuck to it like you have here. Not sure why?
I’ve had good luck capping the outside off and filling a partially clogged drain with a descaler and letting it sit for 15 minutes or so. Pull the cap, let it rush out and vacuum.
Read about a lawsuit because a neighbor's dog came by and drank some pooled cleaner left behind by HVAC tech, and the dog died. Moral is to not let cleaner pooled around unit when you leave customer site.
Great tip! Perhaps the best approach is: 1) sweep/vacuum up all lose dirt and debris at the inside bottom and the outside base, 2) quick leave blower from inside out, 3) copious amounts of coil cleaner and let set for 10-15 mins, 4) hose off from the inside of coils, 5) hose off from the outside of coils.
below where that dryer is inside the unit,(first part of the video) make sure your liquid line is not touching the other tubing... although 2012 you would have already replaced the condener coil with a big hole in it from rubbing
A magnetic screw tray! I use it all the time to keep the screws contained when taking these apart and it can even magnetize to the metal clip on your milwaukee drill so it is super fast to reinstall the screws!
Interesting video. At the end I see you driving past the 185 interchange on Neely Ferry Rd (I think.) This is just a couple miles from where I grew up. 😀
I have the same spine fin coil on a 2010 model and need to clean it but I noticed the spines fall off very easily. I tried just water and decent pressure but it didn't do much as the yard clippings are stuck on it. Is it normal the spines fall off fairly easily or maybe a sign of corrosion?
Don't worry about what other people say you are the greatest you know what you're doing and you're very smart and polite about it keep what you're doing you're doing a great job
Whats your thoughts on the Honeywell 4" filters and should the dryer be located inside or outside by the condenser and I really like your videos. Thanks Keep-Kool
Those 3M high filtration filters adds less pressure than you think. Do a pressure differential test. They use a less restrictive materials than their lower end products.
I'm a recent subscriber and have watched a few of your videos, nice easy pace on the job. I was wondering what the solution was that you used on the fins?
I'm using a24" x 30" x 5" filter. it is merv 14 and does a great job getting dust out of the air. It is designed to fit my filter opening. By having the 5" deep filter media material, it does not raise the pressure drop and does a much better job than the 1" filters.
Hose expediency in those fill-baskets on that milly sprayer (or basically any backpack sprayer) you cut the pointy end off a funnel so the hose fits snug through the hole and it'll get rid of splash. Just leave the cut funnel in the basket.
Great video, it's amazing the amount of crap these things can take in over time. How often would you recommend having a condenser cleaned? I cleaned my girlfriends evaporator and filters in February after realising the mesh filters were caked with dust, but I'm seriously considering calling the professionals in to have at the condenser on the roof as it's, well, on the roof (I don't do rooftops) and I've no idea if it's even been done...
Love how you protect the electrical panel when spraying the water around , you could see the water mist going right in the box , but it's none of my business if the place Burns to the ground 🤣😂😅 , and yes I will agree that I think that way of cleaning is the best and only right way to do it , especially if you are doing a roof top unit ! ( I would have offered to change out the coil pack while I was at it due to the build up of moisture
It came out great. It probably wouldn’t have take very long to brush it off either way but I don’t know why anybody would argue with success. What coil cleaner did you use? I’d also like to know what coil cleaner you use on the black ICP coils? It’s so easy to make a mess out of them with strong coil cleaners.
Could you do a video on proper filters to use? I find buying filters confusing because of the choices and always just buy the cheap fiberglass ones. I'm worried I'll restrict the airflow too much, etc. Great videos!
Its not that simple, the only way to know what amount of pressure drop across the filter your system can handle without detriment is to measure total static pressure of the system. Its also very helpful to measure static pressure at various points to get an idea of where the total is being used up. Most systems assuming proper design will deliver the correct airflow between .4 and .8 total static pressure. The majority of systems have very little room for any filter above .1 pressure drop, Because of all the other drops, coil, grilles, registers duct friction etc. (sadly many poorly designed systems are adversely affected at even .1 filter drop), the magic filters he refers to are often .2 to .4 in drop, so they cause major problems. When I do manual J,S,and D on tract homes I size at .1 filter drop as its more or less the industry standard, but even then we install a larger filter size than minimum to help offset customers making bad filter choices. In custom installations where the home owner stresses higher level filtration, I size as needed for the associated pressure drop of their choice. In short if you want to use higher Merv rated filters, have a competent tech take static pressure readings and see what your system is at. and what it can handle
I would recommend a benzomatic soldering and brazing propylene torch kit. Found at Lowes. When i first became a tech, my service manger taught me the trick of using this torch on a heat pump/ AC while it is running and applying the heat of the torch to the outdoor coil in a method of going up and down quickly. This would help to be more efficient while doing a coil cleaning. (Pre Clean before washing with cleaner. A lot of houses have poor water pressure and it makes it tuff to wash out the coils sometimes.
I ordered the custom made metal filters that you can hose out and last forever. they do not look like they are restrictive. I had to order them because my house has six wall filters distributed in the home in the walls. Those long 29 by 6 filters cant be purchased anywhere in town and you have to order them. I think I made the right choice in getting these washable metal ones.
Can I suggest multiple tools?! 1)milwaukee m12 sprayer, lighter and just as good as the m18 2) the nu calgon wand that goes down into condenser shroud, so no removal to clean inside out!! 3) the new nu calgon expanding gallo gun 💪 4) a funnel 🤣 Thanks for the content Ted as always keep it
Where do I purchase the adapters and hose to connect to my Shop Vac so I can clean my condensate lines? My house has 3 units and we have one rental all with the same manufacturer. They clog and short out the circuit boards which is a pain and expensive
We live in Az and just beginning to look into cleaning the coils. We had lots of sand. Gonna try and clean coils this week. Dont know wat cleaner is used. Only hav a hardware store in town. Wat make of AC Mgf is best, $$ & service? And hows a ductless verses regular unit?
Damn ....that compressor looked like it was wearing a sweater🤣🤣🤣. Great job on getting them up and running again. Actually a quick question....I have an Aprilair system that uses the pleated filters. Should I not use it and convert over to the one inch cheapo filters? The system seems to run fine and the air flow is good. I do check it once a month. My system was installed this past May so I suspect within the next few months it will have to be replaced. I know my milage may vary🤣
I didn't think that music was bad at all! I think the volume changes when the music came on was the issue. The levels should all have had the same level (voice and music). And yea, that Trane was plugged with crap. Amazing it was cooling at all.
Cotton wood seeds ,not grass clipping no grass around unit to do that. I hate cotton wood trees .Thanks for the cleaning tips was wondering what cleaner you like .
