Cold coughs - Dirty a/c filter a health hazard

Auto technician Brian Holler has told Automotives that many times, motorists are unaware that their vehicles are equipped with cabin air filters and are, therefore, unaware of the potential perils if they are not cleaned regularly.

"The cabin air filter is a
purifier for the air that comes through the air-conditioning vents. In
the car you can circulate air, or you can get air coming from outside.
The blend door opens and closes, so with most cars, the filter fits
right over the blower motor. It traps dirt particles that are coming
from outside and then filtrates clean air through the bottom section. It
stops dust mites and bacteria that come into the car," Holler
explained.

Therefore, motorists who neglect cleaning
and changing their cabin air filters put themselves and their passengers
at risk of inhaling contaminated air through the air-conditioning
vents. This may contribute to bacterial infections, with various
respiratory illnesses
resulting.

ILLNESSES

Dr Jephthah
Ford pointed to a number of illnesses which may be contracted and/or
triggered by the inhalation of contaminated air from air-conditioning
vents.

"You can have microspores, that are spores from fungi. You can
have bacteria that, if the filters are wet or water comes in contact
with them, then you can get bacteria. You would have dust and fomites
that are going to come out and provoke allergies. If they provoke an
infection, the infection can be severe enough to cause death, but in the
normal run of things, no - it would not cause death if you visit your
doctor and get treated."

There is also the potential
to pass on illness. "When you have the filter in the air-conditioning,
part of the function is the rebreeding of air in the vehicle. So that if
you drive in my car with cough and cold that you usually have, then it
predisposes me to picking up those infections if the filters are not
cleaned," he added.

Holler explained that not all cars
come equipped with cabin air filters, but may have a space for one to
be installed. It depends on the car manufacturer and target market.
"Most cars from 2000 onward actually come with them, but you have test
cars that don't. Some cars, like Honda Civics from '97, '98, '99, those
cars have filters. But if you look at some cars that come from like
Malaysia and Singapore, there's a space for it, but it's not cut because
of the weather there," he said.

"In Singapore,
because the climate there is cooler and there's not much dust, they put
in the space for the filter, but they didn't cut it. So once the car is
shipped from like Singapore and Malaysia to Jamaica, it's recommended
that you cut the space out and install the
filter."

The type of air filter required varies from
car to car, sometimes even in the same line of a particular brand. In
addition, some filters are not readily available for purchase. "You have
filters, like, for Nissan B13 and the older Nissan Sunny. Those filters
are in the evaporator core. Filters like those, you hardly can get
them. I have been searching for the past six months and you can't get
them, not even in Japan," Holler explained. "Most of the cars that have
run into problems are cars from Malaysia and Singapore. The left-hand
drive cars, you have no problem. Cars that come directly from the dealer
themselves, you have no problem."

MULTIPLE FILTERS

Also, there are those vehicles which use more
than one filters. "The BMW E46 uses one long filter, maybe the E36 uses
two. Honda Civics and Honda CRVs from 2000 to 2006 use two filters.
There are two trays that you have to take out, wash them and clean them
and sanitise the box where the filters go and then you put them back
in," Holler said.

While the cabin air filter cost
varies, he offers two different prices to motorists. "I charge $4,500 if
I am just cleaning the box itself by sanitising it, wiping it out and
then putting in the new filters. I have a $5,500 price where, if the
vents can come out, what I would do is take the vents out and wash them.
I would disassemble them, clean inside the housing where the vents are
and put them back in," Holler explained. That takes just over an
hour.

"The Mazda 3 and 5, those actually use two
filters that you reassemble to become one because that's in the
air-conditioning evaporator. A job like that takes about 25 minutes to
pull it down and 25 minutes to put it back. If you know what you're
doing it may take less time but if you don't, it's going to take
longer," Holler said. He noted that the job cannot be rushed. "You have
to take your time. For example, with Mazdas you have to move a computer
and if you damage that computer it's going to cost you more than what
the filter costs you to replace it," Holler said.

He
believes that cabin air filters should be cleaned more regularly than
car manufacturers recommend because of the high exposure to dust and
potholes, among other potential contaminants, on Jamaica's roads. "The
filters are designed for 12 months, but that is for the US market. With
our Jamaican climate and the road conditions, within a six to
eight-month period you need to change them. Put in brand new filters,"
Holler advised.

The motorist has options when
replacing the filter. "You have a regular polyester filter, a regular
white filter. Then you have a charcoal-based filter. That's the
polyester lined with charcoal, so it's like two filters in one. Those
cost more money," he said.