6 Top Reasons why Air Conditioners Leak Water
Posted: Friday, June 16, 2006
by Donald Grummett
http://www.mgservices.ca
An air conditioners primary job is to remove moisture from the room to give us a feeling of comfort. During this process they create a lot of water. How much, is dependent upon humidity in the air, size of the air conditioner, its operating efficiency, and whether it was properly installed.
Water removed from the air during operation falls down the cooling coil and drops into the base. From here it follows channels or passages to the rear of air conditioner. Some of the water is lifted up by the fan blade and used to cool the heating coil, while most proceeds to the rear. Once at the rear it drops out of the base and onto the ground. That is, if everything is working perfectly.
Improperly installed.
A window air conditioner must be slightly lower at the rear than the front. This allows the water being removed from the room to drain to the back of the machine. A difference of one inch is sufficient. This is always the first thing to check. Many are improperly installed in the haste to get relief from the heat. If installed too low at front the water will flow into the room rather than outside. If installed too low at rear, water can roll out front edges before has chance to exit towards rear drain.
Icing up.
Water being de-humidified can turn to ice if there are problems with the cooling system. There are many reasons for an air conditioner to produce ice. Remove front grille while machine is operating. If ice is present on the cooling coil you will probably need service. For more information see our other article: Why window Air Conditioners Ice up.
1. Air leakage around air conditioner.
If warm air is able to enter around the air conditioner it will encounter cooler, dryer air. When they meet condensation will occur. If water leaking from front of air conditioner inspect to see if dripping from body of machine, or water droplets clinging to front area. To test, operate machine for 30 minutes and then use flashlight to check under front edge of base. Small water droplets here indicate an air leakage problem. Add foam insulation to stop warm air from infiltrating.
2. Drain hole blocked.
Rear of air conditioner base has a drain hole or groove to allow water to escape. If becomes blocked water can back up. To test, operate machine for 30 minutes and then inspect if draining properly. If appears blocked use a small piece of wood to open drain hole at rear of metal base. CAUTION: Never be tempted to drill holes into the air conditioner body to relieve water pooling. Severe damage can result.
3. Internal drains blocked.
There are small passageways that allow water to drain from front of air conditioner to the rear. If they become blocked water will pool at front of machine and overflow onto floor. If this happens the air conditioner will require removal from window and servicing.
4. Outside temperature too cold.
This occurs at end of cooling season. If outside temperatures drops below 60 degrees Fahrenheit at night the cooling coil may ice up. If no leakage at bedtime but water in front of machine in morning, suspect this problem. If this problem suspected turn off machine before bedtime and restart as day warms. Alternately, operate machine at night with selector switch in ‘fan only’ position. This will circulate room air during night but not allow cooling.
If warm air is able to enter around the air conditioner it will encounter cooler, dryer air. When they meet condensation will occur. If water leaking from front of air conditioner inspect to see if dripping from body of machine, or water droplets clinging to front area. To test, operate machine for 30 minutes and then use flashlight to check under front edge of base. Small water droplets here indicate an air leakage problem. Add foam insulation to stop warm air from infiltrating.
2. Drain hole blocked.
Rear of air conditioner base has a drain hole or groove to allow water to escape. If becomes blocked water can back up. To test, operate machine for 30 minutes and then inspect if draining properly. If appears blocked use a small piece of wood to open drain hole at rear of metal base. CAUTION: Never be tempted to drill holes into the air conditioner body to relieve water pooling. Severe damage can result.
3. Internal drains blocked.
There are small passageways that allow water to drain from front of air conditioner to the rear. If they become blocked water will pool at front of machine and overflow onto floor. If this happens the air conditioner will require removal from window and servicing.
4. Outside temperature too cold.
This occurs at end of cooling season. If outside temperatures drops below 60 degrees Fahrenheit at night the cooling coil may ice up. If no leakage at bedtime but water in front of machine in morning, suspect this problem. If this problem suspected turn off machine before bedtime and restart as day warms. Alternately, operate machine at night with selector switch in ‘fan only’ position. This will circulate room air during night but not allow cooling.
Copyright 2005 by Donald Grummett. All right reserved.
Donald Grummett is an appliance service manager in Ottawa, Canada.
In the trade over 30 years as a technician, business owner, and technical trainer. Learn many more tips and techniques about your household appliances by visiting http://www.mgservices.ca
This Article has been viewed 180,547 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
More commentsI have two wall units (similar to window types) of the same model. One leaks while the other does not. They both seem to function normally with nothing else different about them. I always thought it was normal to drip and I'm curious if something is wrong with the one that doesn't.
Thank you so much! Great article! My AC was leaking in the front all over my floor and like you said I lowered the back end and its not leaking anymore.
My air conditioner leaks excessively, is pitched and drains out the back. However its a small sized unit and the water was running down and saturating the exterior brick constantly. I riged a tube collecting at the drain hole and it now drains further from the building and into a wagon. Problem is prior to this it had been dripping for months on the walk below and for the first time noticed water, wet carpet in the basement in this location. Did the constant water createa crack in my foundation to now give me trouble with rain and snow collection, thanks to the air conditioner? I'm hoping that it is the result of some water collecting into the sill area and draining down the wall between the exterior wall and drywall, because this was corrected.
YES IT WAS AND I AM NOW READY TO INSPECT MY A/C!
my a/c started leaking after months of working fine. cleaned the filter, sucked out all the accumulated water and dried the unit...but about 45 minutes after starting it up again, more water collected. i live alone in a 3rd story apartment and the a/c is way, way too heavy for me to try to bring it inside myself - is there any way i can clear the drain from the FRONT of the a/c? or should i just try to fashion some kind of long hooked wire tool to reach around the a/c and poke around the drainage hole from the outside? i'm slightly wary of this as there is a wasp's nest outside of my window....really hope i can clear it somehow from the front of the unit if i take the front cover off.
My air conditioner is not a window unit. It is inside the house an is braced by a wooden frame. The leak is at the front base of air conditioner where the metal frame on bottom of air conditioner sits on the wooden frame. There is where I am seeing small droplets of water. Maybe a cup to a cup and a half is leaking every 8-9 hours. What could it be.
excellent advice thanks. :)
after 3 years my air conditioner is leaking excessive water. It was put in my our maintenance man and now our neighbors below us is complaining that it is dripping large volumes of water...any idea what we can do to fix it?
I am an Orlando Electrician and have been an Orlando electrical Contractor for over 20 years. I can say that I run into this problem often and I would suggest you don't wait around and not do anything about it. I say this because I have seen numerous people damage their AC units because of a short curcuit due to the leaking water. Take the time to clean and inspect your ac unit so you don't have this problem.
Excellent post! I just wrote one also. Check it out and let me know what you think please.
I wrote a similar article for central air conditioning but I cant post links on here
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