Finding water dripping inside furnace cabinets is the surefire way to ruin a perfectly good afternoon. You're straight down in the downstairs room or opening the particular utility closet, and instead of the usual hum associated with a working heating unit, you see the puddle or listen to a stable drip, drip, spill arriving from the internal components. It's a heart-sink moment, isn't it? You begin wondering if you're looking at an easy fix or perhaps a huge bill for a brand-new unit.
The particular truth is, water and electricity (or gas) don't combine well, so viewing moisture where it shouldn't be is definitely definitely something you want to tackle sooner rather than later. While it might seem like a total mystery, there are actually only a several common culprits that will cause this sort of mess. Let's tenderize what might be taking place and how a person can get your home back to being dry and hot.
Is This Actually a Big Deal?
Short answer: Yes. Even if it's just a small amount of water dripping inside furnace areas, a person shouldn't ignore it. Furnaces are mostly made of metal, plus we are very mindful exactly what happens when metal stays wet—it rusts. Beyond the rust, that moisture may fry the outlet boards, mess with the burners, or even result in mold development inside your ductwork.
If you catch it early, you may just be looking from a clogged tube. If you wait, a person could be looking at a cracked temperature exchanger or a completely dead motorized inflator motor. So, in case you view a mess, consider this your "check engine light" for your home's heating system.
High-Efficiency Furnaces and Moisture build-up or condensation
If a person have a modern, high-efficiency furnace (the kind with white PVC vent pipes), it's actually supposed to create water. These are called condensing furnaces. They're great because they press every bit of heat out associated with the fuel, but the byproduct of this process is the lot of moisture build-up or condensation.
Under regular circumstances, this water drains out through a tube plus into a ground drain or a pump. But things can go side by side pretty easily.
Clogged Condensate Lines
This will be probably the most common cause for water dripping inside furnace units. With time, the particular drain line may get filled with "gunk"—a lovely combination of dust, soot, and algae. When that line will get plugged, the water has nowhere to go but backup into the furnace. It eventually overflows the interior trap or even the drain pan, and suddenly a person have a small lake in your utility room.
The Secondary Heat Exchanger
This particular is the slightly scarier version of the condensation issue. The secondary heat exchanger is how that will extra heat is pulled out of the exhaust. If this component fails or even gets a split, it can leak water directly into the furnace cabinet. This usually happens in older "high-efficiency" units that are nearing the end of their own lifespan. If you suspect this, you'll definitely require a professional to take a look, as it's a significant part of the system.
Don't Forget the Humidifier
A great deal of people overlook that their furnace often has a whole-home humidifier connected to it. These types of things are excellent for keeping your skin from becoming dry in the winter, but they are usually essentially a handled water leak.
If the humidifier's internal pad gets filled along with calcium or vitamin deposits, or when the solenoid valve will get stuck open, water will start bringing out or leaking where it isn't supposed to. Often, the particular water dripping inside furnace housing is actually just escaping from the humidifier and running throughout the side of the unit. It's worth popping the cover from the humidifier to see when the water is beginning there before you start tearing directly into the furnace itself.
Air Fitness Issues in the Summer
It may seem weird to speak about the AC when we're talking regarding a furnace, but in most homes, they share the same "box. " The evaporator coils for your ALTERNATING CURRENT sits right upon top of your furnace.
In the summer, that coil gets snow cold. If the atmosphere coming across it really is humid, the coils "sweats" (just like a cold soda can). That water should really fall into a drain pan and head out through the pipe. However, when that pan will be rusted through or the drain is clogged, all that will AC condensation will certainly leak straight lower into your furnace. If you observe the leak specifically when the AC is running, your furnace is likely just the victim of a leaky atmosphere conditioner.
Vent out Pipe Problems
Sometimes the issue isn't coming from the furnace processes at all, but from the pipes that lead outside. For conventional furnaces along with metal vents, a person shouldn't really see any water. In the event that you do, it may mean the vent out pipe is the particular wrong size or isn't sloped correctly, causing exhaust fumes to cool down and turn back into liquid before they can exit your roof.
For high-efficiency units with PVC pipes, if those pipes aren't sloped back toward the particular furnace correctly, water can pool in the elbows and eventually leak out of the joints. It's an easy mechanical issue, however it can cause the surprising amount of water to end on your floor.
Immediate Steps You Should Take
If you've spotted water dripping inside furnace components, don't panic, but perform take action. Here's a fast checklist associated with list of positive actions right today:
- Change off the power: Find the turn on the particular side of the particular furnace (it generally seems like a lighting switch) or flip the breaker. Mixing water and electricity is never a good idea.
- Turn off the gas/water: If you think the particular leak is coming from the humidifier, shut down the water line leading to it.
- Clean up the puddle: Use a shop vac or several old towels to get the water off the floor and out of the bottom from the furnace cabinet. The particular drier you keep it, the much less chance there is for rust in order to start.
- Check the filter systems: The super dirty air flow filter can really cause some associated with these moisture problems by restricting airflow and causing things to freeze up or even over-condense.
When to Call in the Pros
Look, I'm all for a good DO-IT-YOURSELF project, but furnaces can be finicky. In case you've checked the drain lines and they seem obvious, and your humidifier looks dry, the problem might be deeper inside the system.
In the event that you see water coming from the particular heat exchanger or even if the drip is constant even when the unit isn't running, it's time to call an HVAC technician. They have the tools to pressure check the lines plus look for cracks that you just can't see with the particular naked eye. In addition, they can make certain the gas ranges and exhaust are venting safely, which is the most important thing for your own family's safety.
At the end of the day, water dripping inside furnace setups is the common headache, yet it's usually fixable if you catch it fast. Watch your utility space, change those filter systems, and don't let a small drop become a flooded downstairs room. Your furnace (and your wallet) may thank you for it!