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If you notice water puddling under your outdoor air conditioning unit, your first instinct might be to pick up the phone and call a contractor for service. Luckily, water leakage from your AC unit can be perfectly normal. However, there are certain circumstances when a leaking AC could be cause for concern and warrant a service call. We’ll help you find out what’s normal and what isn’t for water leaking from your unit.
What’s a Normal Amount of Water to Leak from My Air Conditioner?
There are two main reasons for water (specifically in this case, condensation) to leak from your air conditioner. One factor is your thermostat setting. The second involves the outdoor temperature. When you live in the hot and humid climate of Macon, Georgia, it’s normal to see condensation pooling by the condenser unit because it’s working extremely hard to cool your house down—especially if you keep your thermostat set lower than normal or if it’s an extremely hot day.
When Is AC Water Leakage Too Much?
As a rule of thumb, your air conditioner should leak condensation only while it’s running. If a puddle of condensation pools under your compressor, it should dry up after a hot day. If you notice the unit has been leaking for a full day or longer or you notice the puddle of water is consistently getting bigger, it’s probably wise to call Conditioned Air to inspect your AC unit for problems.
Why Is My Air Conditioner Leaking Water?
Many factors could play a role in why your air conditioner is leaking water either inside the home or out. These include:
- A dirty air filter – If your air conditioner filter becomes clogged or even partially blocked, it can cause the unit’s evaporator coils to freeze, which causes extra water to overflow from the drainage pan.
- Faulty condensate pan – Your air conditioner will leak if the pan that’s designed to hold water breaks down due to age or corrosion.
- Blocked drain pipe – Normal air conditioner function involves water funneling through a series of drainpipes before disappearing down the drain. If any of these drainpipes are blocked, it could cause a water leakage.
- Faulty installation – If your air conditioner is brand new and is experiencing a leaking problem, chances are it is improperly sized for your home or was installed incorrectly.
- Cool outdoor temperatures – If you try to cool your home when the outside temperature is below 60 degrees, the coils may freeze up and cause water leakage.
- Low refrigerant level – When the refrigerant level for your AC is too low, it causes the unit to lose pressure. This can cause freezing coils, which may overflow the drain pan when it melts.
Schedule AC Repair in the Macon Area with Conditioned Air
If your air conditioner is leaking water and you need a contractor, call the experts at Conditioned Air, Inc. to solve the problem. Conditioned Air has more than 70 years of experience in the installation, repair, replacement, and maintenance of HVAC equipment in Middle Georgia. Our highly skilled team is standing by to repair your air conditioner day or night with our 24/7 emergency HVAC services.
Give us a call at (478) 787-6578 or schedule an online appointment today for AC repair in Macon, GA or the surrounding areas.
From time to time, you may notice your air conditioner leaking water outside. Walking outdoors to find a puddle of water underneath your AC’s condenser unit might be alarming, but it’s important to understand when an air conditioner leaking water is normal and when it may indicate an issue with your unit that requires air conditioner repair services.
How Much Water Should Be Leaking from My Air Conditioner?
The amount of condensation you can expect to see from your air conditioner depends on a couple of factors, including:
- Thermostat setting
- Outdoor temperature
Take for example, your home in Montgomery, Frederick, or Howard County. If you come home to find a small puddle of condensation near the drain pipe, that is normal and a common effect of an air conditioner working hard—particularly on extremely hot or humid days. Likewise, if a small puddle is found underneath your air conditioner’s condenser unit, this is most likely a result of your unit’s normal operation.
How Much Water Is Too Much?
There’s a fine line between your air conditioner functioning as expected and when it may need to be repaired, especially if you’re unsure how much leaking water to expect from your AC unit. Under normal operation, your air conditioner should only leak or produce condensation while operating. Then, the small puddle of water should dry up on a hot day.
A telltale sign you could be in need of air conditioner repair is if the water leak persists for a day or more. If it does, you’ll need the help of a professional air conditioning contractor.
What Causes My Air Conditioner to Leak Water?
There could be several factors causing your air conditioner to leak water, including:
- Dirty air filters– when your AC air filter is dirty, partially blocked, or completely clogged, your air conditioner’s evaporator coils are more likely to freeze up, causing excess water to overspill from the drain pan.
- Broken condensate pan– depending on the age of your AC unit, your condensate pan may rust and crack or split over time, causing water to leak from your air conditioner.
- Blockage in the drain pipe– the water in your air conditioner travels to the drain pan via a complex system of drain pipes. If the drain pipe is blocked, it could cause water to leak from your AC.
- Improper installation– if your air conditioner is relatively new and leaks a lot of water it is most likely due to an installation issue. Improper sizing or an incorrectly installed drainage pan can all lead to water leaking from your air conditioner.
- Cold temperatures – toward the end of the air conditioning season, your air conditioner may leak if it’s running while it’s too cold outside. When your unit attempts to cool your home down when temperatures outside are under 60 degrees, the coils could freeze up, causing the unit to leak water.
- Low refrigerant levels – If your refrigerant levels are low, the pressure in your AC system will lower as well, which can cause the evaporator coils to ice up. If those coils freeze, your drain pan may overflow and leak water.
What Should I Do if Water Leaks from My Air Conditioner?
If you notice large amounts of water leaking from your air conditioner’s outside condenser unit for more than 24 hours, be sure to call your local HVAC contractor. If you reside in Montgomery County, Howard County, or Frederick County, Maryland, call GAC Services at (240) 233-8498!
Our cooling specialists are industry trained and certified to repair your air conditioner—no matter what the problem!
The GAC Difference
“What do our customers want?” That’s the question that’s been driving the way we do business at GAC from the very beginning—back when you might have known us as Gaithersburg Air Conditioning & Heating!
While our name may have changed, the way we do business hasn’t.
Up-front pricing. 100% satisfaction guarantee. On-time service. Factory trained and nationally certified technicians. Respect for your home.
These are just a few reasons why your neighbors love working with GAC. It is this commitment to excellence, along with our friendly and honest professionals that has helped us satisfy tens of thousands of customers throughout Maryland over the years. And it is this that we consider the GAC difference.
Contact us for a free replacement estimate on a new cooling system or to schedule service today.
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Does your portable friend accumulate plenty of water unusually quickly? Well, this article is all about the reasons why your portable air conditioner fills with water quickly and how to troubleshoot this issue.
First, is this a common problem? The quick answer is, in most cases, NO.
However, there’s no sense in pressing the panic button if your mobile air con fills with water every few hours and needs constant emptying.
That’s because this can happen due to a variety of causes, some pretty simple in nature and easy to fix.
Below we bring you a checklist to help you determine why your portable AC is producing so much water and things to look for in trying to get rid of this annoying behavior.
Portable air conditioner fills with water quickly- troubleshooting guide
For the benefit of starters, let’s get into the background of this first…
Now, most of the top-notch PACs are set to typically empty the water catching tray automatically thanks to the built-in self-evaporation technology.
This vital feature effectively helps the unit to vent any leftover moisture (after cooling) through the exhaust hose for evaporation eliminating the need for manual emptying of the product.
That said, this is not always the case and some standard and older models need emptying after a couple of hours, for example, 4-8 or so hours (this can vary depending on the size of the tank, the make you own, how high you’ve set it, etc.).
I should mention that this is a very essential task and prevents overflowing and possible mess.
Of course, many of these devices automatically shut off because of excessive water and won’t turn on again until you have manually dumped it.
This brings me to the juiciest part of our discussion: Why your portable air conditioner suddenly starts to fill with water much rapidly..
Why portable air conditioners fills with water quickly and what to do
If you’re wondering “why is my portable ac producing so much water”, you should know that a number of issues can cause this behavior:
Here is a lowdown of what could be causing this curious behavior
1. High humidity level
Part of the air cooling process involves expelling humidity from the air and it’s normal for the pan to fill up fast since it’s working harder to cool the room.
In this case, even emptying once an hour is considered okay for some brands.
What to do
Nothing much is required of you here but patience.
Once the air indoors has been cooled enough, it ordinarily starts to collect less water because humidity has been regularized.
2. It’s newly installed
There are models that collect more water if you’ve just installed it for the first time or after a while from last use and it might be the reason why your portable air conditioner fills with water quickly.
A perfect example is certain Haier portable air conditioners.
The reason is the unit has to dehumidify the entire surroundings initially – floor, ceiling, walls, and other materials indoors- even as it cools until the humidity in the environment comes down to regular levels.
What to do
Don’t fret- once it has finished dehumidifying all of this, there shall be a reduction of the number of times you have to empty it.
In fact, most of the concerned units will continuously evaporate the water from this point.
Meanwhile, closing the windows and doors in the space you’re running the unit brings down the square footage its covering and could be helpful.
In any case, your device will have more moisture to tackle if your living room is getting a continuous stream of humid air from outside.
3. The weather could be to blame
Another common cause of having tons of water coming off your PAC is the weather.
Consequently, people who live in areas that suffer extreme humidity such as the Pacific Northwest get a lot of water collecting in the internal container too.
The reason?
It’s again overworking to keep your space habitable in warm and very humid conditions.
What to do
A dehumidifier may be beneficial with such conditions particularly if the humidity is persistently real high.
Try to install one in the same room as the portable air con and see how things pan out.
At the same time, remove laundry if hanging everywhere as it may be making the house extra damp.
Any other standing water increases your home’s humidity, creating additional discomfort that makes the AC’s work even more difficult and it’s good to remove it.
4. The AC is faulty
The other possibility is your machine being faulty.
I know that this is not the news you wanted to hear but we all know that no man-made machine is flawless.
For instance, some makes are known to condense more water if the air filter gets dirty and grimy.
You see, due to the clogging, the airflow over your air con’s evaporator coil is blocked leading to the coil becoming super cold and to freeze.
The frozen coil starts to melt making water to drip into the evaporation container.
It will in the end cause it to fill up faster than you’re used to.
Additionally, the condensate water pump may not be working properly meaning that you have a non-stop draining chore in your hands.
What to do
These are just a few examples of potential faults.
Obviously, the solution is easy if the cause of your woes is a problematic air filter: be sure to check and clean/replace it regularly (most manufacturers recommend cleaning/replacement after every 30-90 days).
We’re not sure that repairing the pump is DIY stuff and you may want to have a qualified technician look at your device.
Before that, consider calling the manufacturer/dealer directly if you’re still within the warranty period.
Wrapping it up
Portable air cons perform an important function – they reduce warm muggy temperatures in your space and make blazing hot summer days a bit bearable.
You have just learned possible reasons why your portable air conditioner fills with water quickly and some workarounds.
Of course, you want to call in a professional for a better diagnosis if none of the suggested solutions work.
However, there’s no sense in incurring a huge repair bill – assuming you’re out of warranty- if replacing your machine costs less.
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Do portable air conditioners need to be drained? We answer