What Happens If AC Condenser Is Clogged?

An Air Conditioning unit comes with several compartments, and one of them is the condenser. The condenser features several parts, including the fan motor and coil, and it is a crucial compartment that affects the system's efficiency. Condenser serves many purposes, but the most noticeable is that it ejects heat from the unit and keeps it functional.

Keeping the condenser clean and functional is connected to preserving your Air Conditioner and ensuring it lasts for a long time. So if you want your system to last for years, you have to take good care of the condenser. A condenser needs to be clean and must be prevented from getting clogged since dust and dirt can prevent it from working efficiently. Click here to learn about reputable HVAC companies that can help unclog and clean your AC condenser.

What is a Condenser?

As its name implies, a condenser is a part of the AC that helps condense the refrigerant in the unit. It is also responsible for rejecting the thermal energy used by the compressor to discharge vapor. The condenser also rejects the heat load on the evaporator. Therefore, the evaporator coil can easily convert heat into cool air and circulate the air back into the house.

What exactly does a condenser do, and why is it important?

If you wonder why the condenser in your AC is very important and why you must prevent it from getting clogged, here is why.

One of the functions of an AC condenser is that it helps condense the refrigerant vapor into liquid. An Air Conditioner works by removing the heat in your house and replacing it with cool air. However, converting heat to cool air is only possible when the heat is taken away from the vapor. The more heat removed by the condenser, the more liquid formed. This means that the evaporator coil can only work on the vapor after the condenser has drawn heat from the vapor.

What happens if the AC condenser is clogged?

1. Less heat is removed from the AC refrigeran

Simply put, when the condenser is clogged, there is less heat transfer from the unit. This means that all the heat collected from your house is not adequately dispersed out. It also means that less heat is removed from the refrigerant, affecting the amount of cool air generated by the evaporator coil.

2. High condensing pressure

It is important to note that a clogged condenser is one of the most frequent problems that your AC can develop, and for this reason, it is essential to keep the condenser clean. A clogged condenser means there will be a rise in the condensing pressure for the system to work efficiently.

3. High repair cost

The cost of repairing an Air Conditioner is relatively high. This is why many prefer periodic maintenance since it is a way to prevent the AC compartment from developing faults. However, where the condenser is clogged, and you do not know on time, it causes the condenser to overwork. If this continues for a long time, the condenser may break down completely, leading to shut down of your Air Conditioning Unit and a high repair cost.

4. High energy bill

Aside from overspending on repair, a clogged condenser can also increase your energy bill. This is because a clogged condenser affects the AC's efficiency and can cause it to consume more energy since more time is needed before the system can ventilate the house adequately.

How to know when a condenser is clogged

If you notice that your Air Conditioner is not working properly and you've already checked other compartments, you may be dealing with a clogged condenser. In this case, you should first determine whether or not the condenser is clogged before attempting to unclog it. This will help you handle the situation properly and save you from spending a lot on repair.

It is important to note that some Air Conditioners come with a clog detecting sensor that naturally alerts you of a clogged condenser. If your AC comes with that, there is no need to check again. However, it is possible that your AC model or brand does not come with the sensor, and if this is the case, you will have to check yourself

To check if the AC condenser is clogged, try to access the condenser through the drain pipe. This is possible because the condenser is connected to the drainpipe, and when the pipe is clogged, there is a high chance that the condenser is clogged too. Next, check the condenser pan or drain to see if it is full of water. When the drain or condenser pan is full of water, it means the condenser is clogged.

The only way to go around this is to clean the condenser, and you either do this at home or contact an HVAC expert to take a look at it and do the cleaning.

It should be noted that the fact that your AC is not working fine does not naturally mean that the condenser is clogged because other compartments can be faulty too. This is why it is essential that you check if the condenser is clogged or not before proceeding with the cleaning.

Conclusion

A clogged or dirty condenser can affect the way your AC works, and it can prevent it from serving the purpose you got it for. Also, AC repair is reasonably expensive, and repairing the system repeatedly can cost you a lot of money. However, you can prevent this by keeping your Air Conditioner condenser clean.

It is important to remember that the condenser is located in the outside unit, and this means that it is exposed to dust and dirt in your environment. Hence, it can quickly get dirty and may require cleaning a good number of times. If you find cleaning the condenser a little too strenuous and time-consuming, contacting a qualified HVAC company is the best way to go about your periodic cleaning.