There’s no denying that your air conditioner is a very significant financial investment, so it can be worrying to find water leaking from your unit. When there’s water coming from your unit, this is often a sign of an issue involving its internal components, but there’s no need to worry because there are some usual suspects that you can start checking. Here are some common reasons why your air conditioner may be leaking water!
Dirty and Clogged Air Filter
In case you didn’t know, your air conditioner comes with an air filter that removes all the impurities from the air before it’s released back into your space. However, all of these trapped contaminants can quickly build up, especially when the filter isn’t being regularly cleaned, and this can severely compromise the efficiency and operation of your AC system.
You might be wondering what this has to do with your unit leaking water. When your air filter is clogged up with dust and dirt, the airflow inside your unit is negatively affected, which can cause your evaporator coils to completely freeze up. There’s a chance that your unit is leaking water as the ice that formed around these coils starts to melt, so that’s definitely worth looking into.
Clogged Drain Lines
It’s actually normal for your air conditioner to produce some water during the cooling process, but your unit is also built with a drain line that can direct the collected condensation elsewhere. The point is that it shouldn’t be leaking out of your unit, and if it is, then there may be something wrong with your AC’s drain line.
Not many people are aware of the fact that drain lines can get clogged by dirt and debris from the outside, such as twigs, leaves, branches, and much more. When there are obstructions stopping your drain line from operating properly, this can cause a backflow of water, which will then be pushed out of your unit instead.
Low Refrigerant Levels
Refrigerant is the substance that your air conditioning system uses to cool down the warm air that it takes in. When your air conditioner is running on low refrigerant levels, this can actually cause the evaporator coils to become too cold, possibly encasing them in ice and freezing them entirely. And just like with dirty air filters, your unit can start leaking water when the ice surrounding your coils starts to thaw away.
Cracked Drain Pan
The drain pan of your air conditioner collects all the water that is produced during the cooling process. When left neglected for long periods of time, cracks and holes can start to form, allowing the water being collected to leak out of your unit instead of being properly drained through the drainage hose. This may also be connected to frozen evaporator coils, as the drain pan is often located just underneath them.
Dirty Evaporator Coils
There are many reasons why your evaporator coils can freeze up, such as dirty air filters and low refrigerant levels. However, another possible reason is that they’ve accumulated too much dust and dirt and haven’t cleaned for far too long. When your evaporator coils are covered with impurities, they won’t be able to absorb heat efficiently, which can increase the chances of them forming ice. Once this ice melts away, you may be left with a large mess on your hands.
Leave Your Air Conditioner to the Professionals!
These are only a few of the many reasons why your air conditioner could leak water, but it can be hard to be sure which one is the cause behind it. Rather than going through the inside of your unit, it may be best to leave it in the hands of a professional HVAC technician.
A professional can help you diagnose the issue and provide you with the right recommendations to fix the problem. If you are looking for one, visit https://www.luce.sg/services/aircon-servicing.
