Humidifier Leaks Can Lead To Big Problems: Finding The Source

Whole-house humidifiers provide Northwest Arkansas homeowners a variety of benefits such as optimizing home comfort, protecting possessions and helping to keep the flu and cold viruses at bay. Just like any other home-comfort system, your humidifier needs regular service to maintain peak performance and to prevent issues, such as humidifier leaks, that could lead to bigger problems.

If your humidifier is leaking, use this guide to help find the source and quickly remedy the issue.

Water supply

Water leaks generally occur from aging components or from an issue with drainage. Start from the top of the water supply and work your way down to the drainage in order to identify the leak.

When the humidistat calls for humidity, the solenoid valve opens to allow water into the feed tube. The water flows through the orifice, which regulates water pressure. Inspect all three components, the solenoid, feed tube and orifice, for wear and leakage.

Water evaporation

Water flows through the feed tube to the distribution tray. The water panel receives water from the tray. The water panel is designed to permit water to trickle down and simultaneously allow warm air from the heating system to flow through. The water distribution tray should be level and free of obstructions to water flow.

Water drainage

Humidifier leaks typically stem from some point in the drainage system. Surplus water from the water panel collects inside the drain pan. An overflowing drain pan is easy to spot, so the next step is to discover why the water is backing up.

Clogging typically occurs at the drain spud inside the pan, or somewhere in the drainage line to the floor drain. If the drain spud is blocked, you may use a snake to remedy the issue.

If there’s no detectable blockage, there may be an air-lock in the drainage line, which occurs when the drainage line doesn’t maintain a downward slope to the floor drain. Adjust the line so that water collected in the drain pan begins to flow.

If you have any questions about these steps, please contact us at Paschal Heat, Air, Geothermal & Generators in Northwest Arkansas today.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Northwest Arkansas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about humidifiers and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

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