The summer can get extremely hot in West Jefferson, so how in the world is your home’s air conditioner freezing over? It seems to make no sense. You may not even realize it’s occurring. How will you know if your air conditioner is frozen? It may seem like a crazy question, but you generally won’t actually see the ice except in extreme cases. Here are symptoms to watch for that indicate you could be working with a frozen AC system that could need air conditioning service:
- Warm air is coming out of your registers while the air conditioner is running.
- Water is leaking from or gathering under your air conditioner.
When we say the air conditioner is frozen, what’s actually frozen is the evaporator coil, which moves heat out of your home to sustain the cool temps. There are two main causes that an evaporator coil may freeze; one is a refrigerant leak and the second is a blockage of airflow.
If your air conditioner has a refrigerant leak, you will want to talk with your West Jefferson Plumbing and Heating, Inc. technician during your air conditioning service appointment to see if you will benefit more from repairing or replacing your air conditioner. We can help you assess the pros and cons using information such as the age of your air conditioner and its service history, along with other things.
If your air conditioner has frozen because of an airflow blockage, it’s because there is not enough air passing over the evaporator coil to dry the condensation that builds up on it—then it freezes. Air flow blockages are regularly caused by dirty air filters or even dirty cooling fins. These problems can be remedied (and avoided!) by a routine air conditioner service appointment. At these service sessions, your technician will clean your system, replace your air filters and ensure everything is operating as it should with no potential issues on the horizon. It’s also a good idea to mark your calendar or set a reminder on your phone to check your air filters regularly and change your air filters when they are dirty. Always make sure that furniture, curtains and other household items aren’t blocking your registers, as even this could cause a large airflow problem and the following freezing problems.
If your air conditioner freezes, turn it off using your thermostat and call the team at West Jefferson Plumbing and Heating, Inc. to schedule an air conditioning service appointment. We’ll help you identify the problem and have your home back to cool and comfortable as soon as possible. Call us at 614-879-9091 to book an appointment with us.