Attic AC drip tray problem

after bailing system, add a gallon of 50% bleach/water to area that feeds both lines with water, so that the bleach mix can kill the growth clogging the line

wait one hour

bail bleach out

apply compressed air to clogged line to clear, be careful not to get bleach in eyes or on skin or breathe wear goggles/ latex gloves/respirator

after line is clear, apply a 20% bleach solution once/month to keep lines from re-clogging

Shove something down the pipe until it is clear. Wire is good. A drain snake may be OK but the tip may be too big. If that is the case, just cut if off and run the flex portion down the tube. Most likely it is an accumulation of dust the built up over time. Could be some slimey stuff too, so once clear and flowing, pour a bleach solution in the pan and let it drain.

How about going outside where the drain line dumps water and use a wet vac? That will (hopefully) clear the drain. If it doesn't, leave the wet vac attached to the line and go up into an attic and shake the drain lines.

Where I live they do not put floats in the pans. Your air handler should have one drain going outside, directly from the unit. The pan should have its drain going outside as well. Usually the air handler drain is low on the outside wall and the overflow pan is high. They do that so it will be noticed. The air handler should not be dumping into the pan. A shop vac may be able to blow out the blockage. Other posters had good suggestions on cleaning the pan.

I do not know why anyone would use both drain holes from a air handler. One is enough. The manufactures supply usually 2 to cover all of the installation configurations.

If the house is new it might be time to call the contractor and have them correct what sounds like an incorrect installation.

"Y" are not legal if they ever were where I live. Phoenix

Usually yes. In this case, no.

The "Y" fitting you are talking about is probably a tee put there as an air vent and/or a place to pour bleach into the line to help keep it clean. You are probably going to have to cut the line after that fitting to clear it out. First, try and find out where it actually goes. A lot of units here are tied into a bathroom sink drain. Look at the drains on your b/r sinks and see if one has a pipe hooked into it from the side, coming out of the wall. If so, that is the a/c drain. Sometimes they will clog bad enough that you have to dismantle the drain there and clean it out. I've run into them before like that. Also a couple of my co-workers have blown lines out from the attic and went down into the bathroom to find black goop all over the walls and in one case the ceiling. I agree that is usually better to have the secondary pan drain hooked up and draining outside where it is visible, and even better still to have both a drain and a float switch. Anyhow, good luck and get back if any more questions about the problem. Larry

I'm amazed at the amount of water running through this thing. I guess I just hadn't thought about it. We live in a very humid area and it's been miserable so the AC is getting lots of work.

I don't think the main drain has an outlet outside the house. It runs into some insulation after it leaves the handler but it appears to be headed towards the bathroom and the drain pipe there.

I think I'll try to run some wire through it and remove the blockage. I'd have to cut the end off of my snake to make it fit. I think the opening in the main line is an access tube, maybe for this purpose? Thanks for all the great suggestions.

Others have explained the primary and backup functions of the two condensate pipes.

Most homeowners have no idea this is a critical maintenance item. Here in SE Florida I hear all the time of severe damage to houses from condensate leakage due to ignorance. Sometimes when visiting a neighbor or friend, I'll point out the backup-pan pipe exiting their soffits, and no one seems to know what it means when it drips.

Forget the advice about using chlorine. This is often repeated but is based on more ignorance. The fact is it won't work for several reasons, (1) the chlorine will only last perhaps a few weeks before decomposing and/or flushing, (2) chlorine is inactive in the resulting high pH condensate, (3) the chlorine demand to kill and dissolve a typical mold clog is far more than you'll deliver this way.

A strong dose of hypochlorite may help the cleaning process because it is so strongly alkaline, not from the chlorine. Lye drain cleaner would work better, but I wouldn't recommend that either.

Polyquat tabs or pouches are also sold (or pushed by the repair trade) as clog preventers, but I doubt these work for the same reasons, and that the dose is tiny and short-lived.

In my experience, vacuuming won't usually work on a clogged condensate pipe. On an easy clog, it will work a little, just enough to give the illusion that it worked because the drain will flow again, just enough for the condensate drip, but most of the clog is still there and will quickly grow back.

The way that works is to install a disconnect at the air handler, consisting of a PVC repair coupling or Fernco rubber coupler, and use a rubber-tipped blow gun with 90 psi shop air to blow the clog(s) out. This is a much more involved and expensive method, but it has always worked for me. You get a hideos gooey clog splattered on the ground where the pipe ends.

Make sure you have U-trap installed in the line. Otherwise air flows through, collecting dust and fostering more mold growth that leads to clogging.

Too much work. If it's PVC all the way, pour some liquid drain-o down there. Just like a regular drain pipe in your house.

Wait the recommended time and dump in some water to clear it out. Done.

I just had a similar problem with our heat pump. I have two compressors in the back yard, and one air handler in the attic and the other in the basement.

We discovered a very wet ceiling in the basement of our 3-story townhouse in MD.

Presuming a leaking water pipe, we called he plumber who had to knock a hole in the ceiling about two feet by 18 inches. Looked around and determined that it was NOT a leaking pipe but a leak from a pipe associated with the air handler in the attic.

The heat pump guys came out and checked the attic air handler and determined that it was a blocked drain pipe that handled the humidity the air handler pulled out of the air. The water from the air handler went down a plastic drain pipe. The guys who came out could not figure out where that pipe led. They had a pistol-like device into which you put a COs cartridge then fire it down the blocked drain.

They fired two of these down the drain then followed it with a gallon or two of water. I stood in the basement ready to see if any water dripped. None. Presume that's done the trick but we are going to leave that ceiling unrepaired for a month or two to see if any more water drips out. Servicemen also recommended pouring a bottle of the drain cleaner formulated for plastic pipes down the "Y" joint at the head of the drain pipe just an added insurance.

bob

the AC has shut down

doing this because of a

fills up, it raises a

I have two compressors

attic and the other in the

of our 3-story

plumber who had to knock a

Looked around and

leak from a pipe

air handler and

handled the humidity

from the air handler

came out could not figure

device into which you

drain.

followed it with a gallon

to see if any water

but we are going to leave

if any more water

bottle of the drain

joint at the head of

Why don't you just run a new drain line?

It is not legal to run an AC condensate drain into a sewer. The only thing that should tie into the sewer is plumbing fixture drain. The drain of the unit should go outside. Cut it apart in the attic and use a shop vac to suck out the main drain pan in the indoor unit. Then suck the drain line that disappears into the insulation. With the AC OFF so it doesn't make water for a while, go outside while the vacuum is running and listen for the sucking noise. You will find where the drain line comes outside. In the future you will be able to vacuum it from there. It is usually next to the outdoor unit here, but sometimes is put behind bushes to hide that ugly thing. :-)

You should not be working off the emergency drain pan. You can run a drain line from the emergency pan to the soffit so you will know the next time you have a problem before the AC shuts off or the ceiling comes down.

Stretch

In most places you're right.

I used to work in a county that had no codes. As I recall, when gas lline was run, the fire department came out to make sure it didn't leak. Condensate drain? Anywhere.

Well north of you, in New England, the condensate from high efficency boilers is routinely put into sewers and septic systems. In Colorado also, as I recall. The difference there is that the acidic condensate has to be neutralized.

Amen.

Huh? Every AC unit I've ever seen (here in the upper midwest they're typically in the basement) has the condensate line going to a floor drain, which ends up in the sewer.

My mom's house has an attic AC unit which was installed in the mid 1970's. It's condensate drains right into the vent stack. I have no idea if that is/was legal but can't see how such a little trickle of water would cause problems there. She was on a septic system until a municipal sewer was finally installed a couple years ago.

-Tim