Your air conditioning system isn’t a water-using appliance like the water heater, washing machine, or dishwasher in your house. So if you start to see water leaking from the base of the AC cabinet in your home, you may feel a bit confused. Where is the water coming from? Is this a serious problem that needs professional attention?
Water leaking from an AC is actually a common occurrence, and it’s also one that usually requires repairs from licensed HVAC technicians. We can handle any AC repair in Hart County you may need for your air conditioner, so please feel free to call us when you’ve noticed water pooling around your air conditioner.
Water and the AC
Although your air conditioning system doesn’t use water to run, water is a part of its cooling cycle. You may have already guessed this because if you listen to the sounds your AC makes as it runs, you’ll occasionally hear the sound of water dripping. If you’ve ever had to deal with a window AC unit, you’ll also know the water drips from the outside half of the unit and onto the ground.
This is condensate moisture. As the air conditioner runs, it pushes cold refrigerant through the indoor coil. When warm air comes into contact with the coil, the refrigerant evaporates and absorbs heat from the air, cooling it down.
The evaporation also causes moisture in the air to condense along the surface of the coil; it’s the same effect as when moisture forms on the outside of a glass of cold water. This water has to go somewhere, and the AC has a condensate drainage system set up to handle it.
The water drips down from the coil assembly into a shallow pan beneath it. From there, a condensate pump pulls the water down a drain and out a line. The water eventually drips outside of the house.
Condensate Drainage Trouble
Like any part of an AC, the condensate drainage system can run into problems that will lead to water leaking out of the AC:
- The plastic condensate pan can crack because of long exposure to heat, leading to water leaking from the bottom of the pan and out of the AC.
- Algal growths can start to grow inside the drain, causing the condensate water to rapidly overflow the shallow pan (it’s only about an inch deep).
- A broken pump will make it harder for water to flow out of the pan and also lead to an overflow.
- If the drain corrodes, it will detach from the bottom of the pan and leave a hole for water to leak through.
You want water leaks stopped as soon as you notice them. These leaks can cause the air conditioner to abruptly shut down when the limit switch trips, and leaving too much water inside the AC will lead to mold and moisture growth inside the unit. Our AC repair pros will see your air conditioner is repaired quickly and correctly so you have no more problems with leaking water.
JN Electrical Temperature Control, Inc works hard to ensure customer satisfaction with custom comfort solutions. Call us for any air conditioning repair you need.