Exploring HVAC Services

« Back to Home

Think You Have A Leak In Your Refrigerant Line? Look For These Things

Posted on

Has your home's air conditioning not been working well, and you think that you have a leak in the refrigerant line? If so, it will help to look for the following things to confirm any suspicions you may have.

Warm Air

The first thing that you are going to want to check for is warm air. The air coming out of your vents don't have to be completely warm to identify a refrigerant leak, since it may be getting warmer in temperature while still cooling down your home. If you have doubts, check the temperature of the air coming out of the vents by putting a thermometer in it. What you want to see is a significant difference between the temperature inside your home and the air coming out from the vents.

Frozen Coils

There is an A-coil in your HVAC system that does most of the work of cooling down the air in your home. However, it is possible that this coil is actually frozen due to a lack of refrigerant in the HVAC system. It is worth opening up your air handler inside your home and looking at the coil itself. Is the coil covered with ice? Then you likely have a leak that needs to be found.

Bubbling Line

It is going to be incredibly difficult to find a leak in the refrigerant line on your own because the refrigerant is both colorless and odorless. While some people can hear a hissing sound of the refrigerant coming through a leak in the refrigerant line, this is not always possible. A good solution that you can try on your own is to spray down the refrigerant lines with soapy water. This will create a film over the line that the refrigerant or air must pass through to come out. Spray the line down, and you'll likely be able to see a part of the line that is bubbling due to some refrigerant trying to push past the soapy barrier.

Low Refrigerant Levels

A sure way to identify if your air conditioner is low on refrigerant is to actually test the system and measure the refrigerant levels. If you do identify the system as having low refrigerant, remember that you must get the leak fixed or any new refrigerant is just going to drain right back out of the system. Have an HVAC contractor come and repair your air conditioning for you. 

For more information about air conditioning repair, reach out to a local HVAC contracor.


Share