Air Conditioning and Moisture

[Roni Litmanovic]

Hi guys, I took a couple of quick thermal image of a friend's apt. who's ceiling in the master bedroom is full of moisture (pic1, 2 ) Apparently the neighbor upstairs has a wall-mounted AC Unit (pic3) in his bedroom with a chiller, which is ultimately I believe the source of this problem. The distribution of the apts is identical so the upstairs wall where the AC is mounted runs down to the downstairs apt. The neighbors wall (upstairs) and floor directly beneath the AC unit is also saturated with moisture(pic 4). My question is (finally) can condensation be the source of so much water in both apartments or a potential leak in the equipment? We were not able to check pipes because they were not accessible but there is water everywhere and actively dripping in the lower apartement. Also, the walls of the upstairs apartment of showing signs of constant moisture presence and mold has begun to appear.

[Rick Hurst]

Ron,

There could be condensation dripping off the refrigerant lines or a possibly a condensate drain pan or drain line issue that definately could be the source for the moisture.

Someone should also check the roof for any openings around the sewer vent pipes that might be a source.

rick

[Scott Patterson]

Hi guys, I took a couple of quick thermal image of a friend's apt. who's ceiling in the master bedroom is full of moisture (pic1, 2 ) Apparently the neighbor upstairs has a wall-mounted AC Unit (pic3) in his bedroom with a chiller, which is ultimately I believe the source of this problem. The distribution of the apts is identical so the upstairs wall where the AC is mounted runs down to the downstairs apt. The neighbors wall (upstairs) and floor directly beneath the AC unit is also saturated with moisture(pic 4). My question is (finally) can condensation be the source of so much water in both apartments or a potential leak in the equipment? We were not able to check pipes because they were not accessible but there is water everywhere and actively dripping in the lower apartement. Also, the walls of the upstairs apartment of showing signs of constant moisture presence and mold has begun to appear.

It could be caused by many things. They could have too much A/C and they are super cooling the unit.

Did you try and trace the path of the water with a moisture meter?

Yes, condensation could cause that much water.

[Roni Litmanovic]

Thanks guys....I will check the roof for any openings in the vent pipes. I will also check the other apts in this building to see if any are having similar problems. Hopefully it will be the equipment and not condensation caused by the super cooling....I'll keep you posted.