How To Clean Your Heat Pump

It's not difficult to clean your heat pump, but many people just never do it. First of all, they might be intimidated by working on such a large, seemingly complicated appliance. But, the heat pump is actually very easy to clean. This article explains how to safely and effectively clean an exterior residential heat pump. Heat pumps are located outside of the house because they help to convert the outside air into cold air, and they transfer heat from inside the house, to the outside. This vital heat exchange is obviously going to go much smoother if your pump is kept as clean as possible.

Where to Clean

Obviously, the heat pump is going to get dirty all of the time, and you are going to have to deal with a less efficient system if you don't ever clean it. The outside of the heat pump has the condenser coils. It is usually the dirtiest and in the most need of cleaning. Rain can help to wash away dirt on the outside walls of the heat pump, but it isn't going to solve all of your problems. Every once in a while, you need to clean the outside walls of your heat pump with a hose.

This will wash the dirt out from in between the condenser fins. This is important because they are a huge part of the heat transfer process. When your condenser fins are dirty, your heat pump needs to work harder and use more electricity. So, just spraying the outside of your condenser unit can actually make it more energy efficient.

Cleaning The Outside of the Unit

You also need to clean the inside of your condenser by removing the bird guard. The bird guard can be removed by taking out a couple of screws. Lift the guard up and sit on the ground. Most pumps have a fan mounted to the bottom, pointing downward. This large fan can be quite heavy, so it might take two people to lift it out. Cleaning the fan components, blades, motor, and all of the surrounding components can be beneficial. Don't spray any heavy duty cleaners on the motor. Just wipe down the surfaces with a moist rag. If you have an industrial shop vacuum, you should clean out the bottom pan of the empty compartment. Removing dirt and leaves from the inside of your heat pump definitely won't hurt.

This basic cleaning might not have an immediate, drastic effect on the overall efficiency of your HVAC, but it could definitely be beneficial in the long run. For more information, contact a company like CNR Air Conditioning Inc.