3 Reasons Why Your Air Conditioner Freezes Up

People might often think that with a home air conditioner freezing up would be a good thing and would help it give out cooler air. It is not just silly but it also doesn’t make sense because that is not how air conditioning systems work. A home air conditioner or any air conditioning unit for that matter works with refined and balanced control of temperature, airflow, and pressure. If even one of these three major factors falls out of place or balance then the refrigerant system that is able to produce cool air tends to back up and freeze itself to damage. This can, in no way, make the air produced by your home air conditioner any cooler. 

In the case of an air conditioning unit freezing up, you will notice that the frozen air conditioner is only blowing out warm/cool air or nothing at all. This can also lead to water leakage in the interior and exterior units of your air conditioner. You must be wondering why or how this happens and some of you have already faced a situation like that and looking for a solution to this. 

1. Blocked coils due to dust or other particles

When your air conditioner runs without an air filter, a low-quality filter, or absolutely no filter at all, it can absorb more dust and particles than it will with a filter installed. At the time of installing an air conditioner, air conditioner installers often advise you to keep a regular check on the filters and change them regularly. Due to the moist air on the surface, air conditioner refrigerant coils are always damp. 

When the dust comes in contact with these moist coils, they create a thick blanket over them. This dust ends up trapping all the cold in the coils by creating too excessive cold. This will further create more moisture which can build up on the dust and that is how the coils can be blocked. During an air conditioning service, the air conditioning installers or repairmen start by checking the filters and cleaning up any blocked coils.

The reason being, this is one of the most common causes of air conditioners trapping cold air and freezing up. 

2. Low or no airflow

Another common reason for air conditioners freezing up is the lack of airflow. There are different faults or failures that can cause this. One of those faults is a blocked duct. The ducts are a passage for the air to move, so if there is anything blocking these ducts, naturally, the airflow will stop. This can stop the air flowing to the coil. Even when most of the things are working properly in the air conditioner, a simple blockage in the duct can stop the airflow. The coils will then start freezing up because no warm air getting in contact with them.

At the time of air conditioning unit installation, you must check if your current home electricity is enough to power a home air conditioner. Home air conditioners often require a large amount of electrical power to function smoothly and this is the reason why the air conditioner is the one contributing the most to your electricity bill, especially during the summers. When the compressor is running, but the fan or blower motor is under-powered, the airflow freezing problem can occur. 

An air conditioner filter is often the most neglected part, but you will notice how in this article, it is one of the most talked-about things when it comes to maintaining good airflow in your home air conditioning installation. The filters help in keeping the air clean, but when it gathers too much dust, it becomes a blockage.

This blockage slows down the airflow and even if the blower efficiency is great, the coils will end up freezing. The air conditioner service team will suggest the best air filters for your particular air conditioner and ask you to make sure you change them regularly. There are a bunch of good companies offering efficient and correct air conditioning services who will be able to guide you.

3. Refrigerant levels

The refrigerant levels decide how the air conditioner manages pressure. The compressor compresses the refrigerant once it releases the heat collected by it. The warm is converted into gas that heats up and then drops pressure. The compressor is then able to pump it back into a liquid and towards the blower fan. But if the refrigerant is not enough or the refrigerant lacks in the air conditioner, this kind of fault can occur when the pressure becomes too low. The cold produced by this flashing process is enough to send moisture to the coils and it can instantly freeze them.

When the flashing occurs more often, the ice buildup keeps increasing till it can fill the air conditioning system. This is why it is extremely important to keep a check on the refrigerant levels of your air conditioning system. 

What to do?

In case you are witnessing ice building around your air conditioner, you must first turn off the thermostat. You can then turn off the air conditioner while leaving the fan on. When you add airflow, it can start melting the ice and that can further help you in reducing the freezing. 

In extreme cases, or when you don’t really know how to exactly get it done, you must get in touch with someone providing air conditioning service or the person who helped you with your air conditioning installation and ask them to come and see where the problem lies. It will often be one of the three things mentioned above. Anyway, you will get a proper answer as to what the problem is and they will provide you with the right set of solutions. There are several companies who offer regular air conditioning service, you can get in touch with them for a regular check-up or as and when a problem arises.