A/C dripping from condensation?

[GregWeld]

Originally Posted by KUL FIR CHICK N

Nope, they're sealed. Drive for an hour or two in your new car with the windows cracked on a humid day and it'll be dripping too. But who wants to be driving their new car? That's why we're all here, right?

Totally agree! And this is a good education for all of us!

[KUL FIR CHICK N]

Originally Posted by Revved

On the vehicle I'm dealing with the water is not coming out of the vents but dripping from the evap case like the drain isn't big enough. I have already verified the drain is clear and as mentioned am getting normal water draining with normal driving. Our humidity has been really high this year so I suppose it is possible that I'm getting so much condensation it is over flowing the drain.

Or another random Idea I just thought of.... Where is your A/C drain located? Mine just has a 1/2" aluminum tubing stub a few inches out of the firewall going down... In theory it could be possible that at highway speeds there is a high pressure area at the back of the engine bay not allowing the condensation to drain properly. I may try extending my drain down under the car where again in theory it would create suction by the air passing under the car.

True that icing of the evap would cause a degredation of the cooling from the vents which I'm not getting but the car I'm dealing with is a convertible so you are never really cooling off like a full cabin car so for me it's hard to tell if I'm loosing cooling... need to get a battery in my dash temp gauge I haven't used in 10 yrs.

Ram-air and/or drain placed in a high pressure area can definitely lead to drainage problems. Running the hose down out of the pressurized under-hood area will help.

The fact that you're working on a convertible could be part of the problem. They never seal well and you'll be producing more condensate both inside and outside the case than you would in a hard top. For this vehicle, insulating the duct hoses may be worth the effort.

Ryan

[69hugger]

Ryan,
Thanks for the replies.

I think you're right on track...my car is not that well sealed. The windows need some adjustment, and I noticed today some warm air coming through the shifter boot. I'm not sure about the kick panel vents, as they have speakers in them.... but I'll take it apart this winter to check that all out. I think my trunk may have even been a contributor, but think that is corrected now.
I have noticed (as you and others have suggested) that having the temp slider at halfway or so seems to keep it from freezing up. When I operated it at max cold, it was obviously freezing up as it would drip for hours. Now, it stops dripping within minutes after stopping.

I'll chip away at all this 'til it's right.

Thanks again to all for weighing in.


Bill