Water in AC condensate pan does not drain (drain not clogged)

[wilcoj]

I live in an apartment and the AC they have installed has a condensate pan below the coils that drip from condensation. The drain for the pan is located on the side of the pan towards the bottom but there is a slight lip allowing about 1/6" of water to remain in the pan without draining. I have been told by the maintenance people that this is normal and to be expected, however I am beginning to smell mildew and the insulation on the inside of the unit is filthy.

Can someone please let me know how I should proceed with this situation? I really need an expert's opinion.

Thanks

[formlessreflections]

If the drain is working then it is normal. Pour a little bleach into the drain pan every now and then to kill microbes etc. That should take care of the problem.

[e-mail] wrote:

[Dave M.]

[e-mail] wrote in news:1152286803.229811.87100@

75g2000cwc.googlegroups.com:

If you have a window unit, many collect water under the edge of the condensor cooling fan. The spinning fan agitates the water and blows it through the condensor coil and out the back of the unit. I got tired of the noise from the swishing water in my A/C and drilled a hole in the bottom of the pan under the fan to dain the water.

I guess the purpose of the water spray is to prevent dripping under the unit and/or further cooling of the condensor.

Dave M.

[Dave M.]

"Dave M." wrote in news:Xns97F99B0998454DaveM@216.196.97.131:

[Stormin Mormon]

Answer B is correct. The condensate is (supposed to) evaporate off the condensor, and carry away more heat.

[gofish]

your system was installed by morons. tell them to come back and re-level your ac unit so that the unit slopes towards the drain such that ALL the water drains from the drain pan.

Have your attorney threaten the installing contractor with Mold Litigation if necessary to get corrective action. A few digital pictures really helps.

[Bubba]

Christ Fish! Take a f***in pill. Read the Ops post again and think! Look what he is telling you. First he lives in an Apartment. We all know what kind of maintenance happens at an apt complex. Next, notice the term "lip" and where/how he uses it. He's talking about how the condensate drain connection cannot be made completely to the bottom of the tray (just like every other drain pan). If he wants all the water to drain from the pan he needs to drill a hole in the bottom of the pan and the top of his head. This will let the water out and the noxious gasses from his head. Lastly, the Op tosses in terms about "mildew", "filthy insulation", "expert" and "how to proceed with this situation". He's practically crying out "I wanna sue, I wanna be rich, I dont wanna work, Im a low-life apt dweller and I wanna live off someone else's money". Im ashamed of you Fish. "You've been here how long? :-) Look for UPS. I'll be sending you that crystal ball. Bubba

[kbwk2mch]

Some water will remain in pan due to fitting drain connects to. You should not get mold because condensate is formed and drains leaving new behind. Sometimes a funky slime forms in pans due to dust etc. You can buy tablets to place in the pan to help with this. If you can reach..you could always shim the back of the pan so more drains out. I don't think it's anything to worry about. Maybe water is leaking around unit causing mold, or you have no trap and odors are coming up the drain??

As for the guy with the window unit. The water is spashed around and cools the condensor which increases your sub-cooling thus efficiency.

[aka-SBM]

Lets see where to start............

Ok...first, properly installed units wont have but a few drops of water left in the pan, and most fittings at least on what we install dont have the lip as you insinuate here that will leave water in the pan, unless of course its the secondary drain. EVERY units got mold. Its got mold spores on it when you install it. Molds been around since the dinos, and you aint gonna stop that. Now..lets see...slime...you suggest its not mold...umm...ok..whatever...you suggest its from dust...gee..now wonder how that mold spore hitched a ride?

Smell is prob DSS, and could be fixed if he had a competent guy out there.

[gofish]

hot damn! I havent hooked a big mouthed Bubba in such a long time I thought I forgot how to bass fish !!

hey speaking of such......

[Bubba]

Bubba

[wilcoj]

[wilcoj]

Thanks this was the kind of advice I was looking for. What kind of tablets do you recommend? The maintenance guy put some fast acting ones in that disolved really quickly, so I was hoping for something a bit more long term. The bottom of the cooling portion sits in a plastic tray. Do I need to be concerned about damaging the unit if I use a tablet that is bleach based?

As to your question, the drain looks trapped and I dont think the odors are coming up from there and I havent spotted any leaks. Over the weekend I flushed out the pan with some water and cleaned up all the bits of grime out from it, then poured some bleach/water mixture into the pan to hopefully address anything else.

The maintenace guy shim'd the back of the unit a bit and it seems like its got a smaller amount sitting in the tray now but there is still a bit.

They have some duct cleaners scheduled to come out this morning, hopefully they will go over the inside insulation with a good detergent.

Any other ideas?

Thanks!

snipped-for-privacy@earthl> Some water will remain in pan due to fitting drain connects to. You

[formlessreflections]

Nah, Sounds like you got it covered. Spray a bleach solution on anything that looks like mold. Add about a cup of bleach a month to your pan and that will help keep the drain lines from cloggin and help kill bacteria.

You can buy the tablets or just spend the $1 on a big bottle of bleach.

[e-mail] wrote:

[aka-SBM]

Bleach will also eat the f****ng coil you moron.

Proper service will insure hes ok..and hes not getting it. Damn sure didnt get it from you.

[velovelo13]

Take the cover off. Clean the inside of the unit with compress air. Use a small brush to lossen the rust and debris that have been collected inside the unit. Clean with compress air again. After the debris have been removed, wipe the inside surfaces with a bleach solution.

If the evaporator is dirty, clean it with a water spray. Do it carefully so that the water doesn't get into the electrical parts.

I am amazed how dirty window air conditioners are and why people don't get sick from the air they put out.

[e-mail] wrote:

[aka-SBM]

Actually, it would be better to clean the coil properly. No bleach should be used on a unit. Ever. Have you looked up how corrosive it is?

Again, it would be better to do it properly.

Cause....the air they put out is the same air that goes into them? If the s**ts in the unit, its not in the air?

[velovelo13]

A weak solution is not very corrosive. One washes clothes with it and people swim in it.

What is the proper procedure?

The air passes through the evaporator. The bottom inch of the evaporator can have an accumulation of mold and rust. The evaporator can also be coated with grease and grim. Grease and grim also accumulate on the fan surface and the inside surfaces of the air outlet chamber.

[aka-SBM]

Why is your washer covered in porcelin? Define weak solution. What you buy in a bottle is about 1.5% or LESS, and its corrosive. People swim in ocean water, but I doubt you would drink it if the salt was removed.

Proper cleaning agents, for starters...

Thanks for the lesson I got my first day on the job many years ago. If you really wanna think about something..

People that dont know any better drink water and use ice in resturants. I wont unless I clean the ice machine. You have any idea how much shit is in the average ice machine? Nice pink mold that the inspector missed cause he didnt know where to look. Nice black mold thats growing in clumps and falling into the ice. Grease on the condensor, grease on the ice field, mold in the water pipes and hoses... Ever look into that cup of ice water that melted and you see what looks like pepper? That aint pepper bud..thats mold. BTW...bleach wont touch whats growing in something as simple as an ice machine..what in hell makes you think its gonna kill whats in an AC unit? You cant rid yourself of mold..thats a fact. Its been around since the dinos and it aint going anywhere anytime soon. I should take a mold sample and send it off when I clean this new account this week. It would be interesting to see whats in this one..its a busy place, got an inspection rating of 100...and the ice machines got more mold in it than my basement...found it when we went to clean the water drain valve this weekend, and found it stuck open..nice pink strands of something in teh water...ohhh..yummy....

[Stormin Mormon]

A weak solution is not very corrosive. One washes clothes with it and people swim in it. CY: And even a weak solution will reduce mold and mildew. 10% of the original strength is about right.

What is the proper procedure? CY: Assortment of different techniques. I've never cleaned an evaporator while it was still mounted in an air handler, so I can't comment.

The air passes through the evaporator. The bottom inch of the evaporator can have an accumulation of mold and rust. The evaporator can also be coated with grease and grim. Grease and grim also accumulate on the fan surface and the inside surfaces of the air outlet chamber. CY: Also, some window AC have mold and mildew. And brown film if a smoker owned the unit. As to window AC, I know that non-acid coil cleaner removes the smokers smell quite effectively.