Through-the-wall Air Conditioner

[Pavel314]

I finally replaced the old through-the-wall air conditioner this morning, s omething that's been on my urgent project list for several years now. It wo rks well and when the compressor goes on, the lights don't dim like they di d with the old one.

My question deals with condensate. The old one, 40+ years old, had a drain hole for condensate while the new one doesn't. I checked the user's manual and it said that some condensate would gather in the pan at the bottom of t he unit, which it has already after one day's use. They said this is normal , don't worry about it. They also state that sometimes, in periods of very high humidity, there might be some condensate overflow from the unit on the outside of the house.

My first thought was to drill a hole in the side of the pan and install an overflow tube. However, if they say not to worry about it, maybe I should s ave the time and trouble and just let it perform as it will.

Any thoughts about or experience with such things?

Paul

[Ashton Crusher]

Don't drill any holes. The condensate will be evaporated by the outside fan that cools the condenser coil. Much less messy then letting it drip on the ground.

[Ed Pawlowski]

DO NOT drill any holes. It the AC is sitting properly, you won't get any water in the house. The water collecting in the pan is picked up by the fan ring and is slung onto the coil to help cooling.

Many brand new units were destroyed by errant hole drillers.

[Stormin Mormon]

In a perfect world, the condensate from the cold indoor coil is used to cool the hot outdoor coil. In the real world, there is often some drip as there is too much condensate. As others have cautioned, it's not wise to drill holes into AC units. Too easy to damage wires, tubing, etc.

Best answer is to tilt the unit a bit down and out, and let it drip if it wants to drip from the outdoor corner of the pan.

At the end of AC season, it's a good idea to pull the unit out, take the cover off, and rinse out any mold, slime, dust, etc. Of course, if this is within your skills.

[Jon Danniken]

What he said. When I installed mine, the instructions stated that it needed to be tilted by a certain degree to ensure that the condensate collected towards the outside end of the unit. Condensate over a certain amount is taken up by the flinger, where it provides evaporative cooling to the condenser coil.

Jon

[Pavel314]

something that's been on my urgent project list for several years now. It works well and when the compressor goes on, the lights don't dim like they did with the old one.

n hole for condensate while the new one doesn't. I checked the user's manua l and it said that some condensate would gather in the pan at the bottom of the unit, which it has already after one day's use. They said this is norm al, don't worry about it. They also state that sometimes, in periods of ver y high humidity, there might be some condensate overflow from the unit on t he outside of the house.

n overflow tube. However, if they say not to worry about it, maybe I should save the time and trouble and just let it perform as it will.

Thanks for all the warnings and comments. I had a feeling that drilling hol es was a bad idea. The unit installs in the sleeve with shims putting it at the proper angle for the condensate to gather where it belongs. Good idea to give the catch pan an annual cleaning.

Paul

[MLD]

My question deals with condensate. The old one, 40+ years old, had a drain hole for condensate while the new one doesn't. I checked the user's manual and it said that some condensate would gather in the pan at the bottom of the unit, which it has already after one day's use. They said this is normal, don't worry about it. They also state that sometimes, in periods of very high humidity, there might be some condensate overflow from the unit on the outside of the house.

My first thought was to drill a hole in the side of the pan and install an overflow tube. However, if they say not to worry about it, maybe I should save the time and trouble and just let it perform as it will.

Any thoughts about or experience with such things?

Paul

Not much difference than the condensate pan in your refrigerator--Leave"as is" unless you actually see a problem that needs fixing. MLD