Outland Air Conditioner Pan Cleaner Tablets … (2 Pack) …

I bought these after reading the reviews on Amazon. I have a Frigidaire 12,000 BTU window a/c unit. It's not even two years old yet, but back in the fall I noticed an odor that smelled like old socks. I was very worried that it might be mold growing in the styrofoam insulation in the unit. I was relieved when I finally figured out that it was the stale smell of water sitting in the pan. Apparently, Frigidaire a/c's build up the water in order to help the fan with the cooling. It does work, but I found that occassionally wicking out the water and letting it dry out, as well as cleaning the coils with Evaporator Foam, really keeps it smelling fresh. But if I let the water sit there, the smelly feet odor reappears. I didn't want to have to go through this cleaning cycle every week or so, and that's when I went looking for a solution and discovered these tablets. I cleaned the unit with the Evaporator Foam and wicked out the water, let it dry, then put in two tablets per instructions. I've run the unit since then and am very pleased that the tablets seem to be doing the job as the smell of old socks is finally gone. These are very inexpensive and seem like they last a long time, so definitely a good buy all around. I highly recommend them.

Works well in my A/C

Got the unit running quietly now, didn't know I was out of tablets. You definitely don't want your water to back up inside your condenser pan. Just drop a couple in, and relax.

Easy to use and works great

I used a 6-pack for my outdoor AC pan. That was 6 months ago. I just opened up the unit again for pre-season cleaning and the pan was SO much better than previously. Just a little slime/algae on the bottom. These are helping keep the pan clean and there was no odor coming from the unit. Use these! They will help!

These are 'quat' tablets, the same as you can buy at a hardware store or HVAC place. They come in different sizes, but they're basically all the same, as far as I've seen. The quaternary ammonia salt active ingredient is basically the same, and it's also found in algaecides for ponds and rain barrels and fountains, and so on. This product is often sold as non-toxic, and it sort of is, but also really not. This is one of those semantic things that depends on regulations. All you have to do is look at the instructions that come with these, and it basically says POISON over and over. Quat tablets MIGHT irritate your skin, and some people have allergic reactions to it. Why not wear gloves? Or put a plastic bag over your hand? Make sure your hands are at least dry. Avoid inhaling any dust from these. For the love of god, don't swallow one, or let your dog swallow one, or a child swallow one. They do look like candy. Wash your hands, don't touch your eyes, common sense stuff. On the other hand, a lot of HVAC workers handle these things regularly and never notice a problem. And apparently putting one in the drip pan under your refrigerator will not cause quat fumes to spread through your house, or anything. We use these in our window A/C drip pan, which greatly cuts down on a funky odor there, and under the fridge, which (and this took a long time to track down) was periodically blowing urine-smelling air out behind the refrigerator, to gradually percolate everywhere and make our cats look bad. One tablet fixes that just fine. However, how long a table *lasts* can vary a whole lot. Basically, they slowly dissolve when they get wet. The A/C produces a fair bit of moisture and then dumps it outside, bit by bit, and so a tablet in the A/C drip pan lasts about a month. Under the fridge, at least three months, maybe six. Mileage varies. This package isn't a bad price, but you can buy a bottle of fifty of these things, if you're going through them surprisingly quickly. But note that the more you have in one container, the more dust will build up as they gradually abrade each other. Don't breathe the dust. Also, whatever your A/C is dripping on will become somewhat insect and fish-toxic, although rain should dilute it.

I asked a HVAC guy about these tablets. He said they don’t do much for the drain tube but they don’t hurt the pan. They aren’t expensive so what the heck.

These tablets are kind of like those "shower steamer" that you place on your shower floor. When they get wet, they slowly dissolve and emits a fresh sent while also cleaning its way down the drain line of your AC. Another suggested use is in the defrost drain pan under your home refrigerator. Most people do not realize that there is a plastic pan that catches condensate water, which evaporates and protects your kitchen floor. Placing one of these in that pan will keep it smelling fresh.