Wet area where duct passes into attic after de-icing
#1
08-01-15, 08:18 AM
Join Date: Aug 2015
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Wet area where duct passes into attic after de-icing
Yesterday evening, I had to de-ice my evaporator coils as they had frozen up, likely due to a clogged filter.
I set the fan to 'on' and let the A/C unit cool as normal. This morning, I checked on it and there was no ice buildup, but I noticed where the duct passes from the air handler into the attic (my air handlers are in an upstairs closet), it was wet. It's soaked into the drywall a little, and there were one or two droplets on the duct itself.
I checked in the attic, and the fiberglass insulation mat was also wet on the other side. I dried it off as best I could with paper towels and gave it a good spray of lysol.
Is this likely caused by the whole system heating up due to being shut off for a few hours while I de-iced it, and then running all night to cool the house down by ~8 degrees?
If not, what's the next thing I should check? I'm thinking if I can get it all dried out I'll put new fiberglass insulation behind it, when it came off it wasn't in a reusable state.
thank you very much for any advice.
I set the fan to 'on' and let the A/C unit cool as normal. This morning, I checked on it and there was no ice buildup, but I noticed where the duct passes from the air handler into the attic (my air handlers are in an upstairs closet), it was wet. It's soaked into the drywall a little, and there were one or two droplets on the duct itself.
I checked in the attic, and the fiberglass insulation mat was also wet on the other side. I dried it off as best I could with paper towels and gave it a good spray of lysol.
Is this likely caused by the whole system heating up due to being shut off for a few hours while I de-iced it, and then running all night to cool the house down by ~8 degrees?
If not, what's the next thing I should check? I'm thinking if I can get it all dried out I'll put new fiberglass insulation behind it, when it came off it wasn't in a reusable state.
thank you very much for any advice.
#2
08-01-15, 01:07 PM
Group Moderator
Welcome to the forums.
When the evaporator ices up it can overhang the drain pan and drip into the ductwork as it melts. You could be seeing that water or your ductwork is not fully insulated and the hot air hitting the duct was causing the condensation.
Make sure the drain line is fully open and clean.
When the evaporator ices up it can overhang the drain pan and drip into the ductwork as it melts. You could be seeing that water or your ductwork is not fully insulated and the hot air hitting the duct was causing the condensation.
Make sure the drain line is fully open and clean.
#3
08-01-15, 09:01 PM
Join Date: Aug 2015
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Thank you. I had tried to catch as much of the ice as I could but I'm sure some still made it into the vents. I will check the insulation on the duct and try to reinsulate that piece of drywall.
