Frozen Evaporator Coil

What are the causes of a frozen evaporator coil?

If you’ve ever returned home or woken up in the night to realize your air conditioner is not cooling you, you’ll likely want to get to the root of the cause right away. One of the most common things that can happen with air-conditioners is that the coils have frozen. Frozen air conditioner evaporator coils can look like a layer of ice is has formed over the top of the mechanisms. When this happens your air-conditioning does not work properly. Here are the most common reasons why you could have frozen evaporator coils.

Refrigerant levels

The refrigerant is what produces cool air in your unit. If the refrigerant levels are low, which is likely caused by a leak in your air-conditioning system, this would cause the coils to freeze up.

Blower motor

Your unit has a motor that helps move the air through the evaporator coil. If this motor fails then it will cause the coils to freeze up.

Dirty filters

Not changing dirty filters regularly will cause limited and restricted airflow. This lack of airflow can cause the evaporator coils to become frozen. You should change your filters every 1-3 months depending on pollen and dust levels.

Blocked return

Your air return needs to be clear and free in order to maintain efficient airflow. If the returns are blocked by a piece of furniture or another object this will limit air flow causing frozen evaporator coils.
If you notice that your evaporator coils have frozen there are a few things that you can do to remedy the situation before calling for emergency ac repair:

• Change the setting from cool to fan only. Basically, turn the unit off but keep the fan on. Keeping the fan running will help begin the thawing process and keep the water particles from damaging the unit.
• Check your air filters to be sure that they are not dirty or clogged and in need of replacement.
• Check to make sure that the air is properly coming through the vents in your home.

Be sure to call a licensed air-conditioner repair company to fully check and inspect your system for any issues. If you have frozen evaporator coils your HVAC system will not work properly. Take the steps to thaw your system and once it has thawed out be sure to call for service. When you need HVAC maintenance and repair call me experts and Air Expo.