Water leaking from your ceiling is never a good sign and can be scary if you don’t know why or where it’s coming from. Since many homeowners don’t know exactly how their air conditioner works, knowing the leak is coming from your vents doesn’t offer much relief. Luckily, we are here to help at Champion Home Services! Since all parts of your AC system work together to get the job done, it’s possibly an internal problem. Although it is normal for your AC unit to form condensation on the cooling coil, the condensate drain line is designed to move the water outside your home. Water shouldn’t be dripping from your vents.
A clogged condensate drain line or an overflowing auxiliary drip pan are two of the most common reasons why water drips from air vents. Your air conditioning system works to dehumidify your home by removing the water from the air using your AC unit’s evaporator coils. The condensation then drips to a primary drain pan that will drain the water outside or into home drainage system. If your AC system is located above a living area, it is required to have an auxiliary drain pan located just below your AC system. This is required by code. This drain pan is there to catch water in the event the primary drain system becomes restricted. The auxiliary drain pan should have a switch to turn off the AC system or a drain line that will exit the home where it can be noticed by the homeowner. In the rare event both primary and auxiliary drain system become restricted, you may experience water dripping from the ceiling or AC vents. You’ll want a professional to clean and unclog your condensate line and take a look at your drip pan to see if it’s full or overflowing to stop the water from dripping in your home.
Frozen evaporator coils could also lead to your vents dripping water. When the coil thaws, the water may miss the primary and auxiliary drain systems and drip from vents or ceilings. Sometimes however, water coming from your vents could be caused from duct or air leaks around the supply air grills. This condensation will form on grills when warm, humid air comes in contact with them. Sometimes it has nothing to do with your air conditioner condensate drain system. Water leaking from your roof and other places near your ducts can be redirected to leak from your grills.
If you’re unable to locate the source of your water leakage or have any questions, contact us at Champion AC today. Don’t let water dripping from your vents ruin your walls, furniture or your day. Our professionals at Champion Home Services are happy to assess the situation and get it fixed in no time.
