Your home’s central air conditioner works hard to keep you and your family cool during the hot summer months. Unfortunately, it’s fairly common for your air conditioner to become overworked, and actually restrict the airflow to your home. As hot as it may be outside, your air conditioner can actually become frozen. If this has happened to your air conditioner, don’t panic. This article explains why an air conditioner freezes and if you should schedule air conditioner service to address the issue.

It’s the Evaporator Coil

If your air conditioner ices over, the culprit is the evaporator coil within the condenser unit. There are two typical reasons the coil might freeze. First, the airflow through the coil is restricted. The system is trying to force more cold air through the coil than it can handle and therefore frost starts to build up on the system and slow the process even more. Eventually, the ice could cause damage to the inner workings of the system.

Or, It Needs Refrigerant

If this is not the case, a frozen AC may be due to a lack of refrigerant. Similarly, if this is the case, there simply isn’t enough power to properly transport the air through the coil and things start to freeze up, giving your air conditioner a layer of ice and keeping your home from receiving the cool air it needs.

What to Do

If your air conditioner has stopped cooling properly and has developed a layer of frost or ice, follow these simple steps and your home will be feeling good again in no time.

• Go to the thermostat and turn off your air conditioner totally.
• Check other areas of your air conditioner through which air flows to make sure air is not restricted. Make certain your air filters are clean and all the registers and vents are open.
• Call a licensed HVAC technician such as the ones at Gulfshore Air and schedule your air conditioner service. Whether your air conditioner is low on refrigerant or the evaporator coil is restricted, this is an issue that should be addressed by HVAC pros. 

Contact Us

Gulfshore Air will be able to make a professional diagnosis of your particular problem and let you know what kind of service you will need to remedy the problem. You can contact us by email at [email protected] or call us at 850-897-9499 to schedule an appointment.