Many homeowners count on air conditioners to cool their homes in the scorching summers. However, if you notice ice buildup on your Air Conditioner, that’s a sign that your air conditioner is frozen all over. AC freezing can happen to both indoor and outdoor units and they cannot reset like Honeywell thermostats.

You should know that if this goes unchecked for very long, the repair cost can be as expensive as buying a brand new ac unit, with their prices ranging from $1,000 to $3,500.

You might learn how to unfreeze your AC unit immediately by following our expert tips or speaking to a specialist at Anderson Air.

How to Unfreeze Your AC Unit

These are the first steps of what to do if ac is frozen, and they are quite easy, as you will see below;

Allow Your AC to thaw

Before you let the ice thaw out, you’ll need to switch the AC unit’s thermostat off and switch on the AC fan. Allow the fan to work for a couple of hours to allow the unit to defrost thoroughly. You can keep checking to see when the ice has fully melted though in some cases, it could thaw out after just an hour, and in more severe cases, you may have to run the fan on for a full day.

After doing this, switch the thermostat on and “cool.” If you notice the air blowing out is colder than room temperature, congratulations! It is all good now. If nothing has changed, you may want to consider contacting a professional. An important point to note is that if your system continues to freeze over soon, this indicates something else has gone wrong, and you’ll need to reach out to a professional to check it.

Check the Air Filter

Another way how to unfreeze your ac unit is by cleaning or changing the filters.

If you remember that you haven’t cleaned the air filter in a long time, clogging can cause your AC system to stop functioning as efficiently as it ought to. It takes very little for an air filter to get clogged up, and this is one of the fundamental reasons your air conditioner freezes in the first place. Even the thinnest layer of dirt, mold, or pollen is all it takes to hinder warm air from flowing through the system.

To reach the air filters, remove the cover off the Air Conditioner. Clean the air filter by putting it under a flowing water tap, and then wait until it is fully dry before you place it back inside the air conditioning unit. You’ll have to do this immediately when you switch the thermostat because the more you wait, the more melted water you’ll have to deal with later. You could also buy a new filter from the closest home improvement store.

Check out the AC’s Condensate Pan

Determine if your condensate pan is draining water properly. You should easily be able to see if the pan is draining correctly. If it isn’t, you might have leaks that lead to risky water damage. If there is a pool on the floor under your air conditioner, the pan isn’t draining, water is piling up, and you are at risk of significant water damage.

If the condensate pan isn’t leaking before you check it out, place some towels on the floor beneath the AC unit if any water spills out. You will also need to add some specially manufactured cleaning tablets to your pan to avoid future buildup and remove any foul odors.

Look at the AC’s Condensate Drain

With all the moving components of an air conditioning system, the other reason it could be freezing over is probably due to a blocked condensate drain. As you melt the ice, the water should flow into the condensate pan and then flow outside through the condensate drain, which could be a PVC pipe.

If there’s any dirt in the water, this can cause a blockage, which then causes an overflow. Overflow leads to significant water damage, and excess water around the unit leads to freezing and ruining your home decor.

How to Tell if Your Air Conditioner unit Is Frozen

Letting a frozen air conditioner run could quickly damage your AC compressor, a part that is very expensive and tiresome to fix. In a few scenarios, you might have to replace the entire air conditioning system. A few visible signs of a freezing AC unit include:

● Your AC system isn’t reaching the intended thermostat setting

● The air blowing from the air vents feels warm

● Your electricity bill is higher than the norm

● Water pooling around the AC

● bubbling noises

● water droplets around the air registers

● frozen ac coils

● Ice outside your AC unit

To prevent this issue altogether and avoid frequent inspection of your air conditioning unit for signs of being frozen, you’ll need your AC serviced every year.

How Long It Takes for Your AC Unit to Defrost

It’s common for people experiencing a frozen AC problem to be curious about how long it takes to thaw their air conditioner unit. The ice melting process can even take up to 24 hours, depending on the size of your air conditioner, the size of the ice buildup, and the efficiency of your AC blower fan. If the ice on your air conditioner was just forming, it could clear up quicker in an hour or a couple of hours.

Conclusion

If you clean your air conditioner’s filter and fail to unfreeze your ac, it may be time to reach out to the professionals at an HVAC service near you to draw a full workup of your AC unit and fix any extensive damage you couldn’t determine. Professional assistance guarantees 100% satisfaction that your AC unit won’t suffer further damage. It is the surest way on how to unfreeze your ac unit.