Many homeowners consider their air conditioning to be an essential piece of equipment for surviving the hot summer temperatures. Unfortunately, your air conditioning could also be the result that you and your family are getting sick. While your air conditioner is excellent at cooling down the air inside your home, it is also the ideal environment for mold, bacteria, and viruses to breed. This means that when you turn on your air conditioner, you could be spreading harmful pollutants throughout your home.
How Mold and Bacteria Thrive Inside Your AC:
Air conditioning operates by pumping cold gas through the coils. The coils are copper tubing fitted with aluminum fins. As the gas passes through the coil, it becomes chilled. The return air is then filtered and blown across the chilled fins. This chills the return air from inside your home. Just as you would find with a cold glass containing ice, condensation is formed. Usually, moisture drips from the fins to a drip pan, where the moisture can be safely drained away.
Unfortunately, the return air often contains bacteria and even mold spores. These contaminants are deposited onto the surface of the moist copper coils. Most models of air conditioner cannot filter out bacteria and mold spores. This means that the coils become a rampant breeding ground for viruses, bacteria, and mold that thrive in dark, wet conditions.
The Potential Problems:
Allowing bacteria and mold to thrive on your air conditioner coils can cause a variety of issues. This includes decreased air conditioner airflow, compromised energy efficiency, increased energy bills, increased mold colonization, unpleasant odors, increased risk of allergies, compromised indoor air quality and reduced equipment life span.
The Solution:
Fortunately, there is a solution that can protect your home; UV. Germicidal UV lamps can kill bacteria, mildew, mold and viruses in your air conditioning system. The lamp can ensure that your coils are germ free and sanitary, reducing the risk of coil corrosion. Additionally, you will find that you can reduce or eliminate potential allergens, lowering the risk of sinus problems, asthma, and other respiratory conditions.
Germicidal UV lamps can be fitted into your HVAC system, above or below the air conditioner coils. The lamps generate UV energy that can penetrate the cell wall of microorganisms such as bacteria and mold. This causes cell damage on the genetic level, preventing the microorganism from reproducing and spreading. This will help to eliminate any organisms including mold, mildew, and bacteria.
After the initial installation, UV lamps require very little maintenance. A UV lamp cannot replace the filters, as you will still need these filters in place to eliminate larger particles of dirt, pet hair, dust and other debris. The combination of a UV lamp and a good quality filter will ensure that your indoor air is not only clean, but free of bacteria and mold spores. This will freshen up the environment inside your home, making it feel fresh while keeping your family protected from the contaminants in poor quality air.