Why is my heat pump/ac unit freezing lines?

Question

I keep my a/c on about 72, when i came home from work a lil while ago it my house is at 78 and now 79. One of my black insulted hoses is frozen through. I contacted my maintenance guy, but i really don't expect to hear from him until the AM.

Any help?

Answer 1

Verdugo: If your ac unit is freezing up the coil, there is a few things you gotta do.

First, turn off the power to the ac unit, then open the panel where the filter is located, and with a flash light check to see if there is dirt on the coil that is restricting your air. you want to use a brush and a vacuum without bending the fins and clean that coil. Change your filter every 3 months.

second, Make sure your return air register is clean if not then clean it.

Third, Check to see if your blower is running.

Fourth, put the cover up and put the power back on.

Fifth, set your ac unit only ten degrees lower than the outside temperature, and if your ac unit runs for ten hours straight, then give it about two hours of rest before you put it to run again. when the ac unit runs for a very long time without any rest the ac unit starts freezing up and won't work well in those conditions. Good luck.

Answer 2

I'm not sure why exactly, low on freon?? I know that when It's happened to us, we turned the ac off, and used a blow dryer to remove all of the ice, it's important not to bend any of those little aluminum vents.  We held a pot under to collect the water and used the dryer and heat from our hands.  Time consuming, but it should work for a little while.  It would be good for about two days, then we had to do it again, then it started doing it constantly and we got professional help.

Answer 3

your condensor, the unit outside is low on freon. have your

service guy charge it & check for a possible leak.

Answer 4

It's called vapor lock. Turn it off for a few hours. Then turn it on and see if it cools. You probably need a new compressor. Good luck  :)

Answer 5

First you should shut off the AC and just have the fan running, that will thaw the system out.

Then check your air filter to make sure it is not clogged. Air flow restriction can cause the coil to freeze up. If you find the filter is very dirty remove/replace it and leave the fan running with the AC off until the system has thawed.

If the air filter is clean/not an issue, you may be low on freon.

Answer 6

HVAC Tech.: You could have any one of several problems or a combination of any or all of them. One thing you cannot have is a vapor lock!! If the filter is very dirty it can cause the evaporator coil to freeze over. If the system has been run with no filter the dirt, hair, etc. would get caught in the coil where slime and molds could grow on it and prevent air flow through the fins on the coil. Loss of refrigerant could cause this also. You really need a professional to diagnose the problem and cure it.Change the filter every month!! Good luck.

Answer 7

Even a brand new a/c unit will Ice that way if it is left to operate with restricted air flow of any cause like dirty filter, dirty blower wheel, air restriction due to something blocking air ducts and return air grills, or a bad indoor blower

It does need to be thawed with the fan Only running to help it melt faster. If the filter was nasty and clogged bad.. then that is probably all that is wrong. If nothing was blocking the air flow and it is blowing good after thawing. you may be shoet on your freon charge . But thaw it try it.

Answer 8

Try turning it off, letting it thaw, and then turn it on again but at a lower temperature setting at first.  If the pipes didn't crack it should still work.