Air conditioners are not supposed to cool your home with ice. Instead, they use much a much more efficient source of cooling—electricity. If your air conditioner is encased in a block of ice, like so many are that need help, then there’s something wrong.
What are the causes of ice forming on the coils of your AC? How bad can the damage get? Is it an expensive fix to have done? We can answer all of these questions if you keep reading. Just remember that nothing you read online is going to make you feel better than calling our team.
Calling us for AC repair in New Orleans, or if you just need some advice about your system, is the best thing you can do. Our qualified experts have experience with this kind of issue, and we can talk you through any necessary steps.
How Does It Happen?
Ice doesn’t just magically form on an air conditioner. It takes two ingredients to form ice—moisture and cold temperatures. Once those things reach a certain amount, ice can form regardless of the weather outside.
Ice usually forms on the coil of an air conditioner because of either a refrigerant leak or low air flow. When one of these two things occur, it can dramatically lower the temperature of the air inside the system, causing any and all moisture to freeze and create ice. Let’s take a look at each of these problems and see what can be done.
Low Airflow
When was the last time you changed the air filter in your air conditioner? If you don’t remember, or it was over a few months ago, your AC could be in danger of freezing up. When there’s less airflow in the air conditioner, the cooled air that is created has trouble reaching the rooms of your home. This means the temperature of the air can compound and get extremely cold, contributing to the growth of ice. Go ahead and replace your air conditioner’s air filter and see if it makes a difference. If not, then you could be dealing with a refrigerant leak.
Refrigerant Leak
Refrigerant is necessary for the cooling process. It’s kept at high pressure and cycled from the evaporator coil to the condenser coil. This process draws heat out of your home and cools it in the system.
However, if there’s less refrigerant in your AC due to a leak, the temperature could begin to drop lower than it should be. This can also aid in the growth of ice on your system’s coils. Likewise, if your air conditioner leaks refrigerant or has problems with the pressurization of refrigerant, it could begin to expand. When refrigerant expands, it drops in temperature, which could then lead to ice forming on your coils.
Here’s What to Do
Turn your system off. There’s nothing you can do while your air conditioner is still functioning and freezing up. When you turn it off, the ice can thaw appropriately and then you can call us to take next steps towards getting it repaired.
The team at Natal’s Air Conditioning can help fix your AC. Call us today! Service honoring the golden rule.