The Water Supply Line to My Air Conditioner Is Frozen and the Blower Is Not Working

Thermostat

• A broken thermostat could cause the compressor to turn on when the room temperature rises above the desired setting but fail to engage the condenser fan, which blows the cold air into the room. This means that while the fan is disabled, the cooling element kicks in and produces cold air inside of the air conditioner unit with nowhere to put it. The cold air causes condensation that freezes inside of the unit. Not only is the unit freezing, none of the cold air is blown into the room because the fan is disabled. This could be happening, because the thermostat is disconnected from the fan. You can lower the thermostat setting to below room temperature to test the thermostat. Both the compressor and fan should turn on. If the fan remains off, the thermostat needs to be repaired.

Fan Motor

• As a rule, if the fan fails to run, the unit more than likely will freeze. There are a number of reasons why the condenser fan might fail. There could be a piece of debris, such as a plastic bag, tangled up around the fan axle, preventing the fan from turning. The fan could be installed incorrectly on the fan motor such that the fan either strikes the fan housing or blows in reverse. The ball bearings of the fan motor could be dry and generate friction, which hinders the movement of the fan. You can remove the panels from the air conditioning unit to take a closer look.

Coils

• If the cooling element is dirty, the unit may freeze and prevent the fan from blowing cold air into the room. You can shine a flashlight into the unit to look through the cooling coils. If you can’t see light on the other side of the element, then the coils are dirty and need to be cleaned. The coils can be sprayed down right where they are with water. When the water comes out clean on the other end, the coils are clean. If necessary, you can use a wet/dry vacuum to pick up the excess water.

Outside Air

• Sometimes, cold outside air can cause the air conditioner unit to freeze. If the AC runs when the outside weather is cold and the lowest thermostat setting is higher than the outside temperature, the unit will freeze and prevent the blower from supplying the room with cold air. It’s best to avoid running the unit during cold weather. To thaw the unit, turn the temperature and fan speed up or turn the unit off, allowing it time to thaw out and dry.