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AC drain pipe clogged

Posted on 4/8/23 at 10:22 pm
Posted by CajunSportsman
Baton Rouge
Member since Aug 2011
133 posts
Posted on 4/8/23 at 10:22 pm
My pan keeps filling up and my float switch shutting the AC down. I have poured clorox and then Lye down the drain. Tried the shop vac from the inside on the vent. I even routed out the drain vent from the roof with a 20" hand router. Its not draining. What next?
Posted by fightin tigers
Downtown Prairieville
Member since Mar 2008
73681 posts
Posted on 4/8/23 at 10:36 pm to
I've had success with a water hose. Basically try to seal up the mating face as best as possible and push through.

May also be a good idea to make sure the outlet of the drain is open, assuming it drains outside. Run a clothes hanger or wire as fall up, make sure nothing has made a home in the pipe.
Posted by The Korean
Denham Springs, LA
Member since May 2008
1615 posts
Posted on 4/8/23 at 10:44 pm to
You may be able to find at hardware store locally but i got a co2 drain gun from Amazon and it worked for me. I did customize an air compressor fitting to use but only because I had it laying around and ran out of co2 cartridges. It’s sort of a satisfying feeling when you get the small kick back when it clears the drain.
Posted by BilbeauTBaggins
probably stuck in traffic
Member since May 2021
4429 posts
Posted on 4/8/23 at 10:54 pm to
Is it your evaporator coils in the furnace that's having the emergency pan fill?

We were conveniently out of the house for a few hours after the A/C shut itself off, so I'm guessing once I drained it and kicked it back on, there wasn't any residual moisture to build up on the coils.

Pour bleach down it with boiling hot water. We have a small pipe we can pour into so I blow into that several times to make sure I can hear it drain and also to push some of the hot water through. Haven't had problems since it happened at the end of February
Posted by BilbeauTBaggins
probably stuck in traffic
Member since May 2021
4429 posts
Posted on 4/8/23 at 10:55 pm to
quote:

Its not draining

I need to run it back but you're saying you've poured Clorox down and it's not draining? So is the Clorox backing up out of wherever you're pouring?
Posted by LEASTBAY
Member since Aug 2007
14295 posts
Posted on 4/9/23 at 12:22 am to
I've also used a water hose. From the outside in, make sure your vent cap etc is attached well so you're not spraying your attic with water.
Posted by gerald65
Moss Bluff, LA
Member since Jul 2020
710 posts
Posted on 4/9/23 at 12:37 am to
After you get the drain line cleaned out, check the drain pipe and be sure it slops downward all the way to the end and does not have dip or low spot some where.

This may be why your pipe got plugged up. Once or twice a year, I take my pipe apart and blow it out with my mouth. I then put in about 1/2 cup of clorox.
Posted by baldona
Florida
Member since Feb 2016
20477 posts
Posted on 4/9/23 at 4:59 am to
Sometimes you need to give bleach some time to clear it, how long has it been? I mean shouldn’t be more than 30 mins or so. But bleach kills algae build up, it’s possible your line has something else in it but that’s not normal.

Does your line drain outside or drain into your sewage plumbing? If into your sewage plumbing it’s probably an issue where it T’s into your sewage line.
Posted by mdomingue
Lafayette, LA
Member since Nov 2010
30322 posts
Posted on 4/9/23 at 7:37 am to
quote:

My pan keeps filling up and my float switch shutting the AC down. I have poured clorox and then Lye down the drain. Tried the shop vac from the inside on the vent. I even routed out the drain vent from the roof with a 20" hand router. Its not draining. What next?

Have you isolated where it is clogged? Keep in mind that pouring bleach or lye down the drain takes some time to do its job. If it is in the main drain line, you may be able to use one of these.



https://www.amazon.com/Drain-King-Unclogs-Bathroom-Swimming/dp/B0000CBIWC?th=1


But do not rule out the possibility that it is in the line from the coils to the main drain line.
Posted by Ricardo
Member since Sep 2016
4889 posts
Posted on 4/9/23 at 8:19 am to
Sometimes a really slow drain will prevent the bleach from doing it's job too.

Plug up the drain at the exit (if it drains to the outside.)

Then pour in some bleach mixture until it's full.

Let it sit to soften up the plug.

Open up the outside plug and use the shopvac to suck it out as best you can. Might need to use tape to really seal it up.

The garden hose method can work well too. Just be careful that you don't overpressurize the PVC. Some of these drain setups aren't exactly the most stout. It would really suck to break loose a fitting in the wall.

At the beginning and end of summer, it's probably a good idea to flush out the condensate line.
Posted by Macfly
BR & DS
Member since Jan 2016
8083 posts
Posted on 4/9/23 at 9:44 am to
Maintaining the slope from the pan is important as stated and if the clog recurs in a short time, within a year or so, it may be farther down in the main drain.
I found a taped access point on the vertical drain and ran a 10 ft section of PVC down it and encountered a blockage. Cleared it and have not had a problem in 12 years.
Posted by LSUDad
Still on the move
Member since May 2004
58789 posts
Posted on 4/9/23 at 9:51 am to
Does the line go straight into the drain vent line, or ties into a bathroom drain line?
Posted by keakar
Member since Jan 2017
30031 posts
Posted on 4/9/23 at 11:53 am to
quote:

Tried the shop vac from the inside on the vent.


you dont do it on the vent, that does absolutely nothing since the vent only has air in it.

you cut the main drain line leaving the unit and use the shop vac to suck out the clog.

if you cut the main drain line at the unit and water comes pouring out then its the line that is clogged and you can usually blow hard with your mouth to make the clog go through the line to clear it. if not then use compressed air to do it
Posted by WB Davis
Member since May 2018
2079 posts
Posted on 4/9/23 at 2:29 pm to
quote:

What next?
Service contractors in our area seem to prefer canisters of pressurized air for cleaning 3/4" ID condensate lines.

I've had luck bringing a small shop vac up to the attic, switching the flow by putting the vac hose on the discharge, and sealing with a rag or duct tape onto the condensate line to blow out the clog.

I haven't had much success trying to vacuum out the line from the opening that's outside the house or attached to a sink drain.

Drain King makes a skinny garden hose drain cleaning bladder for 3/4" ID condensate lines, but use with caution since an attic water spill can cause damaged sheetrock and mold.
Posted by Kay
Member since Mar 2011
1944 posts
Posted on 4/9/23 at 3:35 pm to
Hose worked for us. Heard a huge pop and something set loose. Never had the problem again. Bleach just wouldn’t do it.
Posted by TTU97NI
Celina, TX
Member since Mar 2017
1109 posts
Posted on 4/9/23 at 9:03 pm to
My biggest fear as ours is in the attic, I pour bleach in it when I change out the air filter. I just keep a small funnel up there for that reason.
Posted by Havoc
Member since Nov 2015
28404 posts
Posted on 4/9/23 at 9:16 pm to
Happened to me few days ago. Shop vac from the outside drain on and off sharply about a dozen times I think got it.
Posted by CajunSportsman
Baton Rouge
Member since Aug 2011
133 posts
Posted on 4/9/23 at 9:31 pm to
quote:

I need to run it back but you're saying you've poured Clorox down and it's not draining? So is the Clorox backing up out of wherever you're pouring?

No. t seems to drain the liquid I pour in, that is the weird part. I put a funnel over the pipe and added the shop vac, I pour clorox, clog cleaner, lye, and nothing. Tomorrow, I am going on the opposite end and put the shop vac on it. I think the previous owner had it running out of the eave and into the gutter(?)
Posted by BilbeauTBaggins
probably stuck in traffic
Member since May 2021
4429 posts
Posted on 4/9/23 at 11:15 pm to
quote:

seems to drain the liquid I pour in

Pour more bleach, then boiling water. Probably got a bit more of that algae to break up.

You can blow it in from the top either with compressed air or by creating a fist with a small hole and pushing air in with your mouth.

If you can confirm that it drains into the gutter, you should see it come out. I believe ours drains into the sewer. I never confirmed but it made some amount of sense because we had a leftover bottle of lemon scented bleach that we used and the house smelled like a cleaning store shortly after.
Posted by Mark Makers
The LP
Member since Jul 2015
2336 posts
Posted on 4/10/23 at 7:22 am to
Blast of air from air compressor worked for me.
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