Plugged central air drain

[dewc1]

I have noticed a stream of water running through my register vents when the AC is running. I poked a hole through the one closest to the furnace to allow the water to drain underneath for now. I checked and there is absolutely no water coming out of the white drain outside. Our air seems to not be cooling as well either. It appears that the force of the air out of the vents is lower, but the air is cold. I am in central illinois and the weather is hot right now (102 with heat index and excessive humidity right now). Do you think this is a clogged drain pipe or something else since it does not seem to be cooling quite as well. Will a clogged drain pipe cause the air to not blow as much?

Thanks in advance.


P.S.

Could I attach a (lower pressure-not a really strong one) power washer nozzle to the outside vent and blow water through the drain, or would this cause problems?

[flcruising]

If the AC is running, then the condensate line should be draining water. If it isn't, then a clog is likely. I suggest you take a shop vac to the outside end of it and duct tape the hose on or hold a rag around it while you suck it out.

[dewc1]

You would not advise using a power washer then?

[Robert]

Hi,

No, do not use a power washer. The wet-dry vac will clear the drain IF there is a clog.


However, that will not cause low cooling. Have you cleaned the a-coil, blower wheel and filter recently ?




Thanks,
Robert

[dewc1]

Thanks for the advice. I managed to take the drain pipes off and clean them, but they were not clogged. What I found was that I had to lift the acoil and drip pan up on the backside and place a piece of sheet metal under it so the water would run toward the drain. I guess for some reason the water would overfill in the back. This seems to have done the trick as I have not yet seen any more water in the register.
I took your advice and replaced the furnace filters and cleaned the A coil with a wire brush. It was completely covered in slime. You were absolutely right, once I did those two things my air is back to full power. I probably have 2x the amount of air coming out of the vents now. Thanks alot for the help, you saved me alot of $$$.

[Robert]

Hi,

The a-coil and drain pan are designed for the condensate to flow toward the front. If it has to be tilted(not good), then there is a blockage in the drain troughs on each side.


Don't use a wire brush, use a soft bristled one and brush up and down, never side ways.

If the fins get bent and they can/will, the a-coil will be even worse and basically be in need of replacement.


The round soft brush heads for the wet/dry vacs are good to gently brush and vacuum up the coils.


Then saturate coils with non-acidic evaporator coil cleaner and run the unit to rinse it.


http://www.mobilehomerepair.com/hvac/ar ... ioner.html



Thanks,
Robert