Installing an HVAC filter upside down can have serious consequences for your air conditioning and heating system. Air will have more difficulty flowing through the filter, causing your air handler to work harder to compensate for the loss of airflow. This can lead to higher utility bills and even damage your oven or air conditioner. The biggest damage that can result from a filter installed upside down is that it can damage your HVAC system and reduce its lifespan. When efficiency decreases, the likelihood of a system failure, such as a refrigerant line leak or a failed compressor, increases.
The biggest problem with installing an air filter upside down is that the oven has to work harder to do its job. One side of the filter is more porous than the other. 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 the flow of air through the heat exchanger, according to Bob Vila. The result is an increase in your utility bill and additional wear and tear on your HVAC system. The most common problem you'll face with a rear-facing filter is simple inefficiency.
If the 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 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 the indoor air. 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 most common problem you will have if you have an improperly installed filter is decreased efficiency. Since the filter is designed to be efficient when installed in one way only, installing it incorrectly will make your system inefficient. One side of the filter is more porous to allow more air to flow freely. Therefore, when installing a filter backwards it would mean that your oven has to work harder to get the results you want. This will result in higher utility bills and may cause damage to your oven.
You won't feel the effects of this at first, but this inefficiency can build up and lead to furnace system breakage and further repairs. It won't make any difference. The filter will continue to work exactly the same as if it had been positioned the right way. The reason there is an arrow is because the filter on one side has a mesh that prevents filter material from entering the oven, but that is quite rare. I've seen a lot of filters upside down without any problem. Under the exhaust pressure of the blower fan, these filter structures will eventually fail over time, causing the cardboard filter frame to bend or even bend in the return box.
The filter cannot capture dust particles either when air moves through the filter in the wrong direction. This is because the AC filter is designed in a way that allows for even distribution of dust within the filter material rather than just on the surface. Find an HVAC repair near me and consider repairing and installing the oven filter correctly. The filter prevents these contaminants from damaging the oven by collecting dust and debris before they reach critical HVAC components. If you insert the filter backwards, the result is that the air will have more difficulty passing through the filter. If you install it backwards, your air handler will have to work harder to compensate for the lack of airflow.
For more tips on how to properly install your oven filter, contact your local HVAC specialist at Donald P.Air passes through the air filter, which (depending on the type of air filter you have) traps dust, dirt, and other airborne contaminants. When you install an oven filter upside down, there is no uniform distribution of dust throughout its 1-inch material. Having an inverted HVAC filter can cause system damage, mold problems, poor indoor air quality, and other problems. Check your filters every month and replace them when you can no longer see light coming through them. It basically boils down to this: filters are designed to be more porous when air first hits them (to trap larger particles) and less porous on their outlet side (to trap small dust particles).
These filters will last approximately 3 months; however, they can still fail, causing their cardboard frames to bend or even bend in their return boxes. Air filters have direction arrows indicating which way they should be installed on their return side. Make sure you follow these instructions when replacing your filters; otherwise, you may end up with decreased efficiency due to increased strain on your HVAC system.
