Cleaning inside with anti-bacterial wipes ?


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Old 06-11-16, 03:16 AM
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Cleaning inside with anti-bacterial wipes ?

Is there any reason as to not use any anti-bacterial wipes. Example Germ-X which contains Ethyl Alcohol ?

Or wipes that contain benzalkonium chloride ?

Both of which claim to kill 99.9% of germs ?

I took my AC apart and it was a little dirty inside. There was what looked like the start of mold. Easily wiped off using regular baby wipes.. Took it all off the wires, stickers and panels whereever accessable. Unit came out looking a lot cleaner, and made me feel better. (even if it was only physiological) I also gave my coil a good rinse using a proper indoor coil cleaner and water.

Anyway point i'm trying to make is from this day onwards, i'll undo a few screws (obviously after turning off the unit) and wipe up what ever i can. My question tho is can any harm be done using one of the above chemicals, which surely would slow down any future growth of organic mold.

Baby wipes seem to do the trick, but obviously nothing in there other than a very mild soap.. If its safe for baby's i'm sure its not gonna hurt my AC unit.

Opinions please.
 
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Old 06-11-16, 05:19 AM
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It's not so much the anti bacterial components that do the job. Bacteria will learn to become immune to it eventually. The main thing is getting it CLEAN. Using a good household cleaner such as Lysol or other brands will do the job at a lesser expense than the wipes. Either is fine since you are cleaning it. No harm will come to the A/C from using the wipes.
 
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Old 06-11-16, 01:08 PM
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Alcohol kills bacteria but they cannot build up tolerance to it like they can to tryclosan or benzalkonium chloride. If you feel the need to apply a chemical, it is the best choice, IMO, due to that.
 
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Old 06-11-16, 07:43 PM
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Would any harm come to spraying the coil with some isopropyl alcohol, given i had a small amount of mold growth on it ?
 
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Old 06-11-16, 08:26 PM
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Not sure if you realize it, but mold is not a bacteria nor a germ, but....

Any cleaner will work better than no cleaner.

 
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Old 06-12-16, 03:13 AM
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As Brant says, mold is different from what you are describing the solution for. It requires dark, moist areas with a food source and it will grow. You need to break the chain. Cleaning with any cleaner will work. You don't have a hospital, but an air handler.
 
 

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