Coil cleaning tools help flush out the impurities like dust and debris that embed over the coils. They also disinfect and deodorize. Cleaning the coils of your air conditioner or the HVAC unit is not cumbersome anymore. Thanks to the tools that are flooded in the market, you can take your pick. The choice is so wide that you may feel like a kid in the toy store – greedy and excited. But since we are adults, we need to make a wise choice and can’t just pick the shiniest and most colorful looking tool. So here is a review of the 5 best HVAC coil cleaning tools.
5 HVAC Coil Cleaning Tools
The pros and cons of the 5 HVAC coil cleaning tools are discussed below, along with their basic features. Hopefully, this information will help you choose your preferred tool well.
1. Garden Hose – Isn’t that wonderful? You can just use your regular garden hose to clean the AC coils. The biggest benefit is that most of us already own one and those who don’t can buy it really cheap. Your garden hose will also give you a good and plentiful supply of water as long as there is water in the tank. However, is the garden hose the best choice? Probably not and only because the pressure of water is quite low. If you try increasing the pressure by pressing the hose with your fingertips, you will only manage to get short spurts of it. These short bursts of pressure are not sufficient to get rid of caked impurities.
2. Pressure Washer – Overcoming the disadvantage of the garden hose is the pressure washer. This coil cleaning tool has a good amount of pressure to loosen the accumulated dirt and debris and gets rid of them. Its drawback is that it has just too much pressure. So much so that it can damage and bend the fins that cover the coils. The fins in air handlers are usually made of thin copper or aluminium. Being thin, water at high pressure can flatten them or crush them completely. One has to be extra careful while using a pressure washer to clean the coils in the HVAC unit.
3. Pump Sprayer – The coil cleaning chemical is filled inside a bottle or a small container, and pumping action expels it outside and onto the coils. This is why the apparatus is called a pump sprayer. When using strong chemicals using a pump sprayer is a good idea because you do not come in direct contact with the chemical itself. Nevertheless, a pump sprayer just gets half the job done. You still have to wipe away the chemical that was sprayed over the coils.
4. Aerosol Sprays – Using aerosol sprays is not a good idea mainly because they are not environment-friendly. But the fact that they are easily available and come cheap works in their favor. Most people also get taken in by their self-rinsing properties. Yet the truth is different. The chemical is sprayed on the coils, and it stays there until sufficient condensate has built upon the coils to drain it away. The harsh chemical stays on the coil far longer than necessary. It makes the coil more clogged until and unless the condensate helps drain it away. The coils are made of sensitive metals, so it is not advisable to expose them to strong chemicals for long periods of time.
5. CoilJetⓇ Coil Cleaning System – Saving the best for the last, a complete solution is the CoilJetⓇ cleaning system for coils. It is like a wonder tool because it cleans the coils effectively and efficiently. It works well even if you don’t have power or access to an unlimited supply of water. Fitted with two tanks, one for water and the other for chemical, it has a rechargeable battery. The battery life is long, so you need not fret. Forming a unique pattern while spraying, it cleans the coils thoroughly and nicely. The water pressure is such that it does not even damage the fins. The only drawback of this system is its cost. Compared to other HVAC coil cleaning tools, it is a little expensive. Considering that it is a one-man army, the cost is more than justified.
How Often Should The Coils Be Cleaned?
The coils should be cleaned at least once a year. It is a known fact that dirty coils increase energy consumption by almost 30%. So if you want to keep your electricity bills on the low side and increase the life expectancy of your air conditioner, get the coils cleaned annually. Clean coils will also put less strain on the HVAC unit, thereby keeping repair costs to a minimum. You can also get seasonal maintenance of the AC done, and your coil cleaning will be covered in it. It’s like killing two birds with one stone.
Conclusion
Dirty coils in your HVAC unit can reduce its efficiency by 70%. Adding to the troubles is the fact that it also reduces the operating life of the unit. Cleaning the coils is far less expensive than undertaking costly repairs. If you want to save a few dollars by doing coil cleaning yourself, you can do so. It is relatively easy to do, and the cherry on top is the availability of no-fuss products available in the market to do it. You just need to know the proper way of doing it, so that you do not cause further damage to your air conditioning unit. If in doubt, let a trained technician do it for you. If not, pick a tool of your choice and get to the job. Our list on top will get you started in the right direction. If you take sufficient precautions to prevent the accumulation of dust over the coils, your best tool is the garden hose. And if you want to do professional style cleaning, CleanJetⓇ is your answer.
