Many people are confused to whether or not they should cover their outside unit air conditioner. It may be to your surprise, but there’s really no need to cover it. Your outdoor unit is designed to take outdoor abuse.
The lovely air conditioner is a heavy duty appliance; it’s built to handle frosty conditions, winds, rain, snow and the elements…pretty much everything except lava—that would be bad. Plus, with your A/C uncovered, condensation won’t build up.
Tightly covering your unit has the possibility of doing more harm than good. A cover doesn’t allow proper air circulation. If your unit is unable to "breathe," you’re looking at condensation build-up, mold, mildew, corrosion and so forth.
Also, animals looking for a cozy home may just find themselves underneath that makeshift cover you just made them. Wouldn’t that be a fun spring-cleaning surprise? Not.
If you’re looking to keep out tree debris and other spring-cleaning pains (and are absolutely adamant about covering your A/C), go ahead and try these ideas:
- Switch off the breaker to your air conditioning unit. This will help you avoid compressor damage if you accidentally turn on your system while it’s covered.
- Leave the sides alone. Cover only the top portion of your unit.
- Make sure the cover is not too tight. Some people will loosely place a couple pieces of plywood on top of their air conditioner.
- Allow your unit to breathe.
- Apply your cover late in the season and remove it early in the year.
Photo by DougFrancis | Flickr
