Do you have to worry about mold in your air conditioner?

Air conditioners can save lives and provide us with comfort in the blisters. However, they can also bear health threats – namely related to mold.

This was again emphasized last week, when the manufacturer Midea voluntarily canceled about 1.7 million air conditioners due to a design defect encouraging to grow mold.

Although this disadvantage made mold grow more likely, each air conditioner may become moldy, no matter how good it is designed. Fortunately, there are ways to reduce risk.

Why do air conditioners become moldy?

It’s straightforward: moisture.

Regardless of whether you have a window unit or middle air, the basic process is the same. Air conditioners work, repeatedly transforming the refrigerant from gas into liquid and back into gas. When the refrigerant evaporates, it absorbs heat from the air with a frigid component called the evaporator. The fan blows above the coil, pressing the cold air into the house, while the warm air is pulled back outside, and the refrigerant is condensed back into the liquid to restart the process.

When it cools hot air, it causes condensation. Think about the way water drops form outside the glass when you pour frigid water into it. In the air conditioners, the drainage bowl collects this water, and well -designed systems allow it to flow outside, and not remain stagnous. But these systems may work incorrectly or simply be imperfect.

This means that moisture can sit in the air conditioner for a long time, which leads to a growth of mold, said Mark Mendell, a former research on air pollution research in the California Department of Public Health and a former scientist and epidemiologist Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

Dr. Mendella’s research focused on the health effects of mold in the internal air, not on air conditioners. However, he said that the described process could occur in any air conditioning system. “There will be water collection, which is not really properly drying, or maybe it is grubby. And the air blows over it to your home.”

What are the health hazards?

Despite the ubiquity of air conditioners and their tendency to moldy, there is not many scientific literature on health effects.

One of the few such studies, Posted in 2003He stated that when cooling coils and pans in office air conditioning systems were irradiated with ultraviolet airy to kill bacteria and fungi, employees reported less respiratory symptoms and other symptoms.

For the most part, however, we need to extrapolate from broader studies that have examined the health effects of moisture and mold in internal environments, but not in air conditioning systems.

Review of these tests Posted in 2011 He came to the conclusion that exposure to moisture and mold is associated with exacerbations of asthma, coughing, wheezing breath and the symptoms of the upper respiratory part, but he did not determine that mold was the cause. Another review Posted in 2015 I found enough evidence to say that moisture and mold were the reason for the exacerbation of asthma in children.

Dr. Mendell said that scientists have found that such symptoms occur more often in buildings where people can see or smell mold, but the research has not proved the connections between the symptoms and measurements of specific levels of mushrooms. It is possible that scientists did not measure the appropriate types of mold or that other factors are involved.

“It seems likely that some microbiological exhibitions related to moisture turn out to be the cause of health problems, but we just don’t know for sure,” said Dr. Mendell.

What precautions can you take?

Basic maintenance of the air conditioner, such as regular filter cleaning, can assist prevent mold growth. Many window units have airy that indicates when cleaning is needed, but once or twice a month is a good rule.

Regardless of whether you have window units or central air, controlling humidity at home, if necessary, Dehumidifier is also helpful. It is worth keeping the house pristine, because it will limit the amount of dust, the source of food forms that can get to the air conditioner. Carrying out air purifier can remove both dust and mold.

But these precautions are not a panacea. You should check the air conditioner periodically, especially if it was not used for a long time, for example in winter.

The form can be perceptible around the ventilation holes, and the flashlight can assist you look deeper. If you are ready for this, you can also dismantle the window unit in accordance with the instructions in the instructions to check more accurately and, if necessary, pristine the coils and the drain bowl.

Detailed cleaning instructions for both windows and central air conditioning units can be found here.