Almost free pollen filter
07-17-2002, 11:55 PM
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Almost free pollen filter
While I was repairing my blower motor problem, I noticed that the grilles over the fresh air intakes were removeable by hand. I recalled that I had bought an "allergy free" type washable furnace filter a while back (similar to the Paul Harvey filters but only $15 on sale at Builders Square or someplace like that) and that filter was trim-to-fit. I'd kept a 10"x 2' section of the leftover filter stashed in my basement. I realized I could cut a couple of rectangles out of that leftover filter and wire them to the stock grilles and probably have an effective dust and pollen filter (although small leaves were really my quarry.)
So that's pretty much what I did. First I removed the grilles. They pop off at the top first and then unhook at the bottom rather easily, the LH one is easier to see so you might do it first. I then cut two rectangles out of my filter media, maybe 5" x 8" or so, enough to cover the grilles with 1/2" overhang, and simply wired them to the grilles with twists of 18 gauge solid wire. The filter I am using is layers of foam, a dark layer of open cell foam with large pores and two layers of fine and finer open cell foam. I out the coarsest foam out and wired it tightly enough to slightly crush the filter to close any gaps. The wire was sharp enough to simply drive through the foam and then through the grille. I used one twist at each short side of the rectangle, tightening them saftey wire style to pull the foam tight against the grille, then trimmed off the excess wire. Then I Popped the grilles back on and let it rip. Somewhere int h middle I drank a beer. While I think that step is important I'm not sure if it needs to be done at any specific point in the operation.
My furnace filter is easy to clean. I just remove it and vacuum off the dog hair, then wash it with water to remove the tiny particles. I'm sure the same can be done with these filters on the 944 with the grilles still attached to the filters (but removed from the car.) You might want to dry them with the shop vac or leave them in the sun to keep from rusting the grilles though. You could also undo the wire and rewire them after the filters are dry. In a wet climate that spongy filter might stay damp for some time and that could rust out the grilles.
If you are doing this you could very easily get a pair of grilles from the junkyard and make an extra set of filters to swap out so you can clean the dirty ones at your leisure too.
It looks like it's a good idea to poke the vacuum in by the air intakes every so often, as I have lots of leaves and stuff in there on my car. When you do this you could also vacuum off the outside of these filters and probably then only need to wash the filters out every year or so.
This filter is supposed to take a static charge from the moving air that then attracts the dust. I don't know if that's what's happening but the amount of dirt that washes out of my furnace filter is pretty impressive (and that's after vacuuming it first!)
I tested the system, it seems to work quite well with adequate airflow and the amount of leaves and stuff that sprays out of my vents is considerably reduced :-) I will let you know if any problems develop.
-Joel.
So that's pretty much what I did. First I removed the grilles. They pop off at the top first and then unhook at the bottom rather easily, the LH one is easier to see so you might do it first. I then cut two rectangles out of my filter media, maybe 5" x 8" or so, enough to cover the grilles with 1/2" overhang, and simply wired them to the grilles with twists of 18 gauge solid wire. The filter I am using is layers of foam, a dark layer of open cell foam with large pores and two layers of fine and finer open cell foam. I out the coarsest foam out and wired it tightly enough to slightly crush the filter to close any gaps. The wire was sharp enough to simply drive through the foam and then through the grille. I used one twist at each short side of the rectangle, tightening them saftey wire style to pull the foam tight against the grille, then trimmed off the excess wire. Then I Popped the grilles back on and let it rip. Somewhere int h middle I drank a beer. While I think that step is important I'm not sure if it needs to be done at any specific point in the operation.
My furnace filter is easy to clean. I just remove it and vacuum off the dog hair, then wash it with water to remove the tiny particles. I'm sure the same can be done with these filters on the 944 with the grilles still attached to the filters (but removed from the car.) You might want to dry them with the shop vac or leave them in the sun to keep from rusting the grilles though. You could also undo the wire and rewire them after the filters are dry. In a wet climate that spongy filter might stay damp for some time and that could rust out the grilles.
If you are doing this you could very easily get a pair of grilles from the junkyard and make an extra set of filters to swap out so you can clean the dirty ones at your leisure too.
It looks like it's a good idea to poke the vacuum in by the air intakes every so often, as I have lots of leaves and stuff in there on my car. When you do this you could also vacuum off the outside of these filters and probably then only need to wash the filters out every year or so.
This filter is supposed to take a static charge from the moving air that then attracts the dust. I don't know if that's what's happening but the amount of dirt that washes out of my furnace filter is pretty impressive (and that's after vacuuming it first!)
I tested the system, it seems to work quite well with adequate airflow and the amount of leaves and stuff that sprays out of my vents is considerably reduced :-) I will let you know if any problems develop.
-Joel.
07-18-2002, 12:49 AM
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very cool joel
did you fix the other problem?
just wondering but how cold is the cold air that blows out of your vents on the coldest setting on fan setting 4 with ac off while driving?
did you fix the other problem?
just wondering but how cold is the cold air that blows out of your vents on the coldest setting on fan setting 4 with ac off while driving?
07-19-2002, 01:12 PM
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Thanks for the reply!
I guess you are joking about the air temp? I haven't really tested it but I suppose it's close to ambient. Some cars I've had somehow draw in engine-heated air for the fresh air system, or perhaps they had poorly insulated heater boxes.
I suppose reducing the airflow might increase the heating of the incoming air, hopefully the dust/pollen filters will not reduce airflow by much.
Yes, the all-speed blower problem has been fixed, it was the overtemperature switches that were corroded, I detailed the fix in the other thread.
The only project I have left now are the speaker grilles for my 10-speaker system, they are loose and rattle.
-Joel
I guess you are joking about the air temp? I haven't really tested it but I suppose it's close to ambient. Some cars I've had somehow draw in engine-heated air for the fresh air system, or perhaps they had poorly insulated heater boxes.
I suppose reducing the airflow might increase the heating of the incoming air, hopefully the dust/pollen filters will not reduce airflow by much.
Yes, the all-speed blower problem has been fixed, it was the overtemperature switches that were corroded, I detailed the fix in the other thread.
The only project I have left now are the speaker grilles for my 10-speaker system, they are loose and rattle.
-Joel
