air conditioners and mold - preventing it!

[Guest guest]

After the most recent Vermont sarcoidosis cluster article

http://www.benningtonbanner.com/localnews/ci_6409921

I think I should forward some of the ideas that I've heard about air

conditioners because mold in them or elsewhere may in some cases be

causing or aggravating sarcoidosis.

Note: I'm not an air conditioner expert. To tell you the truth, I have

not used them much, having spent most of my adult life in a cool

coastal climate where they are rarely needed.. BUT, this is good stuff

to know..

Many mini split and central air conditioners *that are well

maintained* don't get moldy. However, this requires frequent attention

- which is mostly cleaning of especially the filters, the cooling and

evaporating coils, and of course any drip pans.

AC systems that are not well maintained frequently become mold

factories. This ends up causing immune system hyersensitization to

mold (and Ive also heard, some of the metallic components of AC

systems..)

Vents need to be kept clean, especially, if the AC has had problems,

they need to be cleaned out. This can be expensive if its ignored for

a long time.

The design of window air conditioners has a major flaw in it that

makes many of them prone to mold and its that the drip pan uses water

from the evaporator to increase cooling. Many people drill a small

hole in the drip pan for that reason - so it never fillus up with

water. Also, you should not use air conditioners continuously because

then the evaporator coils never dry out. They need to dry out fully at

least once every 24 hours to prevent mold from growing. That AND

cleaning wil avoid problems. Many air conditioners on the outsides of

buildings are hard to clean. This is a problem and people should be

aware that those kinds of air conditioners will often make them sick.

If a window air conditioner cant be brought in periodically for

cleaning it needs to not have vent holes between outside and inside

because the outside part of the system will get really dirty. It also

should have the hole drilled in the drip pan or the drip pan will

collect water that will breed mold which often will leak into the

inside air.

The best air conditioners are simple ones that can be cleaned easily

and which dont have any connection between the outside and inside for

moldy air (that has just flowed over the moldy outside coils and drain

pan) to get in.

During the summer months, you should clean the air conditioner coils

and air path frequently, with a foaming cleaner, then wait a while,

then spray with water.. You should also add extra filtration on the

indoor air intake, once the indoor coils are clean, because its

important to keep those indoor coils clean and free of dust/mold food.

Rinse out all drip pans frequently and make sure that the drains work

(or holes are drilled in bottom) so that mold is not growing in them.

Many people also add an extra filter (MERV 6 seems to be about right)

to the indoor intake to prevent large dust particles from coming in

which become attached to the indoor condenser coil and grow mold.)

Don't ever turn on the vent between inside and outside if there is

one, (many people put metal vent tape over them so that they wont get

turned on by mistake) use another window or window fan for fresh air

ventilaltation IN ADDITION TO the AC. (its important to replace the

indoor air with outdoor air several times a day) In very humid

climates this means you will need to run the AC a bit more to

dehumidify.. (or get at least one separate dehumidifier esp. if you

have a basement)

To use an AC to dehumidify, TURN OFF ANY OUTSIDE VENTS, then put the

fan on low and run it with te temperature control set where it will

remain on continuously.

Make sure you have working vent fans in kitchen, shower area etc. and

USE THEM whie cooking, showering (creating moisture)

Keep indoor humidity to less than 50% to prevent mold growth.. Thats

important..