Fins?

[justchecking439]

I'm in the process of buying a new house. I know next to nothing about a lot of home ownership stuff. The HVAC unit has several areas where the fins (?) are bent. Should I demand the builder replace the unit? Is it fixable? Advice? I noticed that the house next door also has the same situation. Does the black mesh stuff under the HVAC casing always get bent? Is that a problem? Thanks.

[docholiday]

Fins can be combed out. They do it at the factory all the time, they handle the coils and occasionally they get bent, they grab a fin comb and straighten them.

[justchecking439]

And so I should not complain? Is a fin comb something I can do with no brains? Have the builder do? Thanks. I assume the fins have some sort of purpose to the HVAC unit and I wouldn't want to damage it further than it already is. It sounds like it's kinda common though? Thanks.

[amickracing]

Bent fins are very common. A few, or a very small area being bent won't really hurt anything. But once quite a few get bent then it'll damper the air flow and heat transfer.

The fins reject the heat that the A/C pulls from the inside (exactly like a radiator in your car, both even have similar fins in most cases).

You can comb them yourself, but you do need to be somewhat carefull. Aside from breaking the comb you can tear some of the fins. I'm not sure where you can get a comb, but probably a hardware store if you do want to try it. If nothing else have a pro come out and do it. If there's a lot have him show you how (if he's willing) and have at it.

[jeep79]

.....DONT have the builder do it! he'll probably try to nail a 2x4 over the bent fins to "fix" the problem! if youre not familiar with it, call a pro.