Why does our window air conditioner freeze up and what can we do to stop it?

Question

The inside front of the thing actually freezes over with a layer of ice. Needless to say , the room doesn't stay cool. What can we do to stop it from freezing?

Thanks everyone so much. You all have good advice. This air conditioner is not even 1 yr. old yet, we bought it at the end of last summer. My husband said he's done most of those things so I guess we need to call in a professional. I'm gonna pick a best answer, but it's only because I can't give it to all of you. Thanks again.

Answer 1

A few things to check:
Thermostat set too low, try a warmer setting.
Not enough airflow across the coils. Get some help, unplug the unit take it outside and gently wash the filter, the evaporator coil, and the outdoor coil with a low-pressure gentle stream of water from the hose. Let the unit dry out for 1/2 hour and replace.
Fan not moving enough air, do you have a good strong breeze coming out of the unit?
Unit low on refrigerant. Nothing you can do; recycle and replace. If the above suggestions do not remedy the ice-up, the unit is low on refrigerant.

Answer 2

Window Air Conditioner Freezing Up

Answer 3

Few things to check. Is the air flow restricted? If so unblock.

Do you run it on high? If so turn it down a little. This use to happen a lot with older units over nite if run on high as they got too cold and the temp outside went down.

Is the unit draining properly, check for plugged drain holes. These units take the moisture out of the air and it collects on the coil. Normally it runs down and drains out, but if it can't escape properly, then it starts to freeze.

Is the filter plugged? If so either replace or in some units the filter can be cleaned (gently wash in a sink).

If none of the above helps, then have the unit checked.

Answer 4

First check the filter. If it is clean look at the evaporator ( inside ) to see if it is clogged with dirt that has gotten past the filter. If everything is clean have the refrigerant checked. If it is low it can cause the unit to freeze.

Answer 5

Your first answer in the above list says it all.
1/ Dirty filter
2/ Dirty evaporator coil (same result)
3/ Gas leak
The first 2 are fixable by you
The last requires a mechanic or you can buy another A/C unit.

Answer 6

also if the unit is too small a btu for the room size as it get hotter during the day the unit will freeze up. we had a brand new unit that done this, it would freeze up in the afternoon. when we got a second unit it stopped freezing up.

Answer 7

Probably a dirty filter have a technician inspect it.

Go to the following site to know what you must know before buying air conditioners:

tinyurl@com/airconknowledge (Replace @com with .com)

Answer 8

90% of windows units problems or dirt

Answer 9

clean it out an try to run it on a diffrent setting