Mold in window a/c unit

I've had this unit for quite a few years and it's working fine.  Recently, however, I notice a moldy smell when I first turn it on.  I looked at some You-tube demos of how to take it apart to clean the fan, etc., but it's way too heavy for me to lift.  I think it's probably not healthy to continue to run it like this.  Any suggestions as to who might be able to do this for me for a reasonable cost?

Lahlah said:

I've had this unit for quite a few years and it's working fine.  Recently, however, I notice a moldy smell when I first turn it on.  I looked at some You-tube demos of how to take it apart to clean the fan, etc., but it's way too heavy for me to lift.  I think it's probably not healthy to continue to run it like this.  Any suggestions as to who might be able to do this for me for a reasonable cost?

 It may be more cost effective to replace it if it's over 10 years old. Mold is something you don't want to play around with and newer units are more energy efficient. If you are solid on cleaning it try task rabbit (I think that's the name of the website for a local handyman) and you should be able to hire someone to remove it fairly cheaply. 

Throw it out. The mold is already in the styrofoam inside the unit. Not worth it to clean.

when ever i looked at task rabbit, fees were very high...well over $25/hour even for the simplest jobs.

jmitw said:

when ever i looked at task rabbit, fees were very high...well over $25/hour even for the simplest jobs.

 Thanks for the responses!  Out it goes!

An alternate experience:

Just the other day, I noticed a buildup of mold on my window air conditioner when i was taking the filter out to clean. Nasty black spotty mold. I'm not sure why after using this a/c for a few years all of a sudden this started. The unit must be 10-12 years old. But, I decided to clean it myself. I filled a bucket halfway with hot water, as hot as I could put my hands in, added 3/4 cup of bleach and a good squirt of liquid dish soap. I pulled all the vents, covers and such off the unit and exposed the inside. I took a rag and wiped every moldy surface i could reach and then wiped down every accessible inside and outside surface and scrubbed all the parts I had removed in the bucket with a brush.

I think (hope) that the bleach will retard the regrowth of the mold, at least until the end of the a/c season. Maybe I'll buy a new unit over the winter when prices are lower.

Of course I had to be very careful not to spill or splash any of the bleach water on my clothes, rugs, bedding, etc. and my hands smelled like bleach for a day.