In the time and era that we are living in, clean air is a commodity. It’s not available to everyone at all times. The cost of all the technological marvels that we can’t live without has made pollution a necessary evil. From the air that we breathe into the water that we drink, everything has been infiltrated by pollutants.
Pollution is a health hazard that can make you fall incredibly sick if you do not take the correct measures to subdue it. One of the most devastating effects of pollution has been the smoke-filled air that goes into our lungs every single day. Air pollution is more than just a nuisance that allows governments to declare holidays to keep people inside. Air pollutants can cause a number of diseases, including lung cancer. This problem has become increasingly prevalent in bigger cities whose high industrial populations have caused them to be enveloped in a permanent state of smog.
While there is a lot you can do to make sure that your cities stay clean and green, all of these things take mass effort. So till you can convince your local factories to stop producing such a hazardous amount of pollution and smoke in the air, you have got to take other measures to stay safe. To make sure that you have access to clean air, you can bring to your home an air filter to purify the air that you breathe in.
Air filters are also a crucial part of air conditioners and necessary to keep their conditioning. You need to get a trusted vendor to sell you air filters for AC if you want to keep your air conditioning unit in top-notch condition. Getting an air filter at home is an important task. Once you have bought the air filter, then you need to make sure that it’s getting the maintenance that it needs. Here’s how you can maintain your air filters at home.
Vacuuming the filter:
If you want to know why it is so important to clean your air filter occasionally, think of it this way. If your filter itself is unclean, how will it be able to filter out pollutants from the air? Without a clean filter in place, you would just be breathing in unclean air, leaving the filter redundant. One way to go about cleaning your air filters is to do it through vacuuming. You don’t have to remove the filter for the cleaning. All you need to do is to take a small vacuum around the encasement area of the AC.
However, you need to use the brush setting to do that, so you don’t blow the dust directly into the filter. With the brush, you need to dust the encasement area gently. Thus you are removing dust from the surroundings. After you have adequately cleaned out the encasement area, then it’s time to work on the filter itself. You need to remove the filter and properly clean out the front and back sides. This, too, can be done with a vacuum, but you will need to do an extensive job to make sure that it’s clean.
The final step is to take the vacuum and use it inside and around the filter, so there is no dirt residue. After this, you can re-install the filter again and go back to breathing clean air.
Removing grime from filters:
There is a vast difference between the air that enters your air filters and the air that leaves it. The air that enters the filter is full of smoke and other pollutants, including dirt. However, the air that leaves the filter is clean and in its purest form. That means your air filter is absorbing all the dirt and grime from the polluted air. This means that your filter might get grimy over time due to daily usage.
To make sure that your filter does not get clogged, you need to clean it periodically. If you wait too long between cleanings, you may find that your filter has been clogged with everything from pet hair to smoke residue.
To clean the grime off your filter, you would need water and dish soap. You need to mix one drop of dish soap into two cups of warm water to create your cleaning solution. The next step is to dip a clean cloth in this solution and use it to wipe both sides of the filter thoroughly. You will know that the cleaning is working when you can find the filter returning to its original color, as all the grease might have made it brown or black.
Once you are fully satisfied with the job you have done, you will have to rinse it thoroughly with water and let it out to dry. Remember only to put the filter back in once you know it is completely dry, as any remaining moisturizer will ruin your air filter.
Cleaning with pressurized air:
Another way to make sure that your filter is getting the maintenance it needs is through the usage of pressurized air. It is a great way to clean out your filter without too much work. One thing to remember before using air under pressure to clean your filter is that the air you use must always be clean and dry. Using unclean air to clean your filter will negate the whole purpose of cleaning in the first place. The pressure through which you clean your filter should not exceed 40PSI.
Furthermore, the distance between the cleaning tool and the filter should not be any closer than 2 inches. Refusal to adhere to any one of these two guidelines would result in your filter being damaged beyond repair.
To effectively clean the filter, you must direct the compressed air through the filter using the clean side of the filter. The nozzle must be run up and down the pleats of the filter while you are directing the vacuum source opposite the air nozzle. This way, dirt will be pulled out of the filter, and you will easily be able to collect it. Be careful not to get the nozzle too close to touch the filter as it would damage the filter.
The Final Word
While this may sound like an exhausting job, it is something that will save you lots of time and effort in the long run. Regular maintenance of your filters will ensure that your air conditioning units remain in the best conditions and keep functioning. A little effort on cleaning will go a long way to save you a lifetime of costs.
