Furnace Air Filter In Grocery Store

[Number_35]

A nearby grocery store has four supplementary electric furnaces. The sight of this blocked air filter bugged me.

The friend I was with used to work in HVAC, and mentioned the filter to an employee. The employee said he had brought maintenance issues to management's attention before and he had been ignored.

 

[doitmyself]

You can lead a horse to water........................................

 

[walterjay]

They will reap what they sow.

 

[97prizm]

That's not good, and can burn out the motor

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Brick and mortar retail is tough. Getting the $3.50 approved to replace that air filter is near impossible.

 

[Hirev]

Been around long enough to know that the word "maintenance" is not in a good percent of people's vocabulary.

 

[Number_35]

Been around long enough to know that the word "maintenance" is not in a good percent of people's vocabulary.

Too true!

 

[JunkdrawerDog]

Surreptitiously poke a few holes in it with your pocket knife to alleviate restriction. This will improve air flow and reduce load on the blower motor.

 

[JohnnyG]

Brick and mortar retail is tough. Getting the $3.50 approved to replace that air filter is near impossible.

More like $15.00 today. I am always amazed at how much more dust is found near the floor than when overhead air intakes are used.
Yes, it should be changed, but failures like that are now pretty common. That wire backing is no where near strong enough to hold that media in place.
Add to that a MERV 8 filter (or higher) and that is to be expected.

 

[The_Jeff]

Intriguing that it's where carts can smash it and kids could theoretically pull it out and start messing around inside.

HDX= Home Depot Xeneric

 

[Number_35]

Surreptitiously poke a few holes in it with your pocket knife to alleviate restriction. This will improve air flow and reduce load on the blower motor.

I was tempted - but remembered that no good deed goes unpunished.

 

[Number_35]

Intriguing that it's where carts can smash it and kids could theoretically pull it out and start messing around inside.

HDX= Home Depot Xeneric

Agreed, these furnaces have all been installed recently, and apparently hurriedly - the big electrical cable comes down from above, where a ceiling tile has been moved aside.

Electric heat is an expensive way to go, in spite of our cheap electricity. I wonder whether a natural-gas furnace failed suddenly.

 

[researcher]

Agreed, these furnaces have all been installed recently, and apparently hurriedly - the big electrical cable comes down from above, where a ceiling tile has been moved aside.

Electric heat is an expensive way to go, in spite of our cheap electricity. I wonder whether a natural-gas furnace failed suddenly.

after watching a lot of Holmes On Homes episodes (He's from the Toronto area), it shows how different codes are in Canada than here in the States. I doubt any retail store here would get away with putting an HVAC unit anywhere near where customers could mess with it.. or too afraid of getting sued. even the electrical just hanging there? wow..

 

[earlyre]

Been around long enough to know that the word "maintenance" is not in a good percent of people's vocabulary.

Dad was in management with Big Lots from '85, until he retired in '07. he'd often say that in the early days their official maintenance policy was "If you can't Duck it, then Buck it"

Duck as in Duct Tape, and the other one wasn't Buck, but a rhyming word that I can't use here...

 

[captainbeandip]

That's not good, and can burn out the motor

Fun fact... An airflow restriction with the older type of blower motors in units like these could actually be easier on the motor.

In general that's true of standard squirrel-cage-type blowers with a "PSC-type" motor. With those an airflow restriction equals less work being done, which equals less amp draw.

Propeller type fans (like in most outdoor air conditioner condensing units) are the opposite. An airflow restriction with one of those would cause it to work harder and draw more amps, which could cause a shorter life.

Disclaimer... Many newer squirrel cage blower motors now use motors that have little computers in them that have the ability to overdrive themselves to compensate for an airflow restriction. With these, an airflow restriction very much could shorten their life.

Either way the plugged up filters would likely be more of an issue for the possible overheating of the heating elements.

 

[repairman54]

Common in business. I'll add in they never vacuum out condensers on cold cases either until they go down.

 

[Number_35]

after watching a lot of Holmes On Homes episodes (He's from the Toronto area), it shows how different codes are in Canada than here in the States. I doubt any retail store here would get away with putting an HVAC unit anywhere near where customers could mess with it.. or too afraid of getting sued. even the electrical just hanging there? wow..

I imagine the slip-and-fall lawyers don't shop at Freshco.

 

[thastinger]

A nearby grocery store has four supplementary electric furnaces. The sight of this blocked air filter bugged me.

The friend I was with used to work in HVAC, and mentioned the filter to an employee. The employee said he had brought maintenance issues to management's attention before and he had been ignored.

View attachment 315518

Yuck, that has poor people skin in it.

 

[Number_35]

Yuck, that has poor people skin in it.

Plus thrifty-people skin.

It's really good for ethnic food, not so good for produce or bread. We ship at various stores.

 

[xspeedy]

If that was a store I frequented, I might just buy a three pack and offer to change it for them. There are probably a few more that need doing.