When an oven filter is placed upside down, the fibers cannot do their job properly. This means that your oven has to work harder to generate the same airflow, resulting in increased energy costs. Particles are also allowed to accumulate unevenly, causing the oven to work even harder to extract air. The biggest damage that can result from a filter installed upside down is that it can damage your HVAC system and reduce its lifespan. An AC filter installed upside down will greatly slow down airflow, your oven will have more difficulty operating.
When efficiency decreases, the likelihood of a system failure, such as a refrigerant line leak or a failed compressor, increases. Oven filters are designed to allow air to flow in one direction through the filter media. In this way, the filter does its job of preventing dust from accumulating on the blowers and motors inside the furnace. While turning the air filter upside down from time to time isn't likely to cause damage to the system, it can cost you money in efficiency. So what happens if the air filter is improperly installed? Air filters are built to be installed in a certain direction.
Installing the air filter backwards can restrict airflow through the air cleaner, cause the filter structure to fail, and allow dust, dirt, and other debris to pass through the filter and accumulate on the evaporator coil. If the evaporator coil becomes dirty, the system will not operate at optimal efficiency and could clog the condensate discharge line and cause the system to fail. The backward filter caused a reduction in airflow through the evaporator, which reduced the amount of heat transferred to the refrigerant. Because of this, it is likely that the refrigerant did not evaporate as soon as it should. This caused the coils at the beginning of the evaporator to be very cold, causing the normal condensation found on the coils to begin to freeze.
As the coils freeze, the airflow is further reduced. As airflow is reduced, less heat is transferred to the coolant. This causes a snowball effect, which continues along the line. The most common problem you'll face with a rear-facing filter is simple inefficiency. If your oven is forced to blow air through the non-porous end of a filter, more energy will be needed to do so.
The blower will overwork and you'll pay more money for your heating. The same goes doubly with an air conditioner that has several filters in place to keep outside contaminants out of your indoor air. These filters will last approximately 3 months; however, they can still fail, causing the filter frame to bend or even bend in the return box. Air passes through an air filter which (depending on what type of air filter you have) traps dust, dirt, and other airborne contaminants. If you reverse direction and install an oven filter upside down, you run the risk of some things like decreased efficiency and system failure. This is because a dirty, clogged air filter will significantly impair your oven's efficiency and air conditioner's performance.
Check your filters every month and replace them when you can no longer see light coming through them. Pleated filters have a support woven into their filter material; usually a metal or plastic cord that helps them withstand fan pressure. For optimal indoor air quality and efficiency near Coachella Valley, just make sure your air filters are installed correctly. In addition to looking at directional arrows, all air filters are built in a certain way based on their type and how long they are designed to last. A furnace or central air unit that has to draw air through the non-porous side of a filter loses efficiency and runs longer; requiring more energy because it slows down airflow through its heat exchanger according to Bob Vila. Most fiberglass filters have little or no structure material such as pleated filters woven into their filter material except for their cardboard frame. The filter prevents these contaminants from damaging your oven by collecting dust and debris before they reach critical HVAC components.
The biggest problem with installing an air filter upside down is that your oven has to work harder than usual. Therefore be sure to look for arrows printed on sides of filters as they show you which direction they should be installed in. Keep in mind that your filter only gets dirty when your oven is running; so if you check your filter in a vacation home that you only visit a couple times a year for example replacing your air filter may not be a monthly task.
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