How birds can affect your Air Conditioning System

plaza-room-no-410This week received a complaint for a window AC unit, that kept shutting down with a “thud” noise, before it could even start the cooling cycle. Our technician paid a visit to inspect the unit.

On reaching the site and closely inspecting the unit, our technician found a bird nesting inside the air conditioner. The technician removed the nest carefully, making sure no birds or their eggs were harmed in the process, serviced the air conditioner and it was good to go.

As a servicing company we receive many complaints regarding bird nesting and pest issues, affecting air conditioning systems.

Come summer, the indoors get unbearably hot. Knowing, that turning on the air conditioner units can possibly harm the birds and their nests, as they lie peacefully inside and around the units, we end up in a jeopardy.  

How birds can affect the working of an Air Conditioning system?

Birds can affect the workings of an air conditioning system in the following ways:

-They can affect the air circulation

The bird droppings, in and around an air conditioner, if left dried, can accumulate and adversely affect the quality of air circulation of an air conditioner.

The dried bird droppings contain particles that get sucked into the fresh air circulation of the air conditioning system. Carried as air-borne particles, they then enter into the building and can lower the indoor air quality, causing serious health concerns.

-Bird droppings can choke filters and clog evaporator coils

An extension to the previous point, the airborne particles released from bird droppings can also gradually choke the air filters, if regular maintenance is not carried out. This can lower the working efficiency of the air conditioning system and lead to the buildup of other major issues, encountered in different working components of an air conditioning unit.
Bird feathers and droppings can accumulate in the form of debris, and clog evaporator coils and drain pans. This can cause a drop in the cooling power of an air conditioning system.

-Birds can conk off a compressor

In our shared story, we saw, how bird nesting can stop an air conditioner’s compressor from starting. The debris of twigs, feathers and straws can stop the fan blades from moving completely, which results in the compressor being conked off. However, this may be a problem encountered in units which are not serviced regularly.

-Birds can peck off the AC insulation

Birds, especially pigeons, when dwelling in and around an air conditioning system, like to peck off the insulation that covers the Copper pipes. These pipes carry the refrigerant between the indoor and outdoor units. With the insulation being removed, energy loss increases and affects the working efficiency of the AC.

-Bird nesting materials carry the risk of fire hazards

Bird nesting materials include straws, twigs, dried droppings and feathers – all highly flammable. The different components of an AC carry electric current through it. In the event of a short circuit, bird nesting in and around the air conditioner, can quickly catch fire and cause damage to the entire unit, as well as other areas of the building in case if the fire spreads.

What you can do to prevent birds from building nests around your AC unit?

There is only so much you can do in terms of servicing and repairing your AC. Unless you don’t take measures to stop birds from building nests around your air conditioning unit, you won’t get rid of the problem permanently.

You can exercise following measures to prevent issues of bird nesting:

  • Install a wire around the outdoor unit of your air conditioning system. This prevents the birds from nesting around the unit. However, make sure that you install a wire which can be easily re-attached post repair or maintenance works.
  • Relocate bird baths or bird feeds, close to your air conditioning unit, make sure you move them to another site.
  • Mount a piece of cardboard, at the top of your air conditioner, fastening it at an angle of 45-degrees. This would prevent the birds from landing on to the top of the AC unit.

Starranty provides Quality Air Conditioning Repair & Maintenance.

If you are facing any issues regarding air conditioning repairs, you can call us on 9769 069 069 your trusted service provider.

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