Community Forums

DesertRat87 · 02-11-2025, 04:18 PM

Hey Folks,

We wrapped up a weekend trip to a local lake over the past weekend and some chilly but not cold, humid weather. We ran the heat pumps in both zones (living area and bedroom) and discovered a small wet spot on Sunday morning.

I did not notice this wet spot on Saturday morning however and thought maybe one our dogs had spilt water. Upon looking a little further I noticed that one of the screw caps on the inside filter cover had a water droplet hanging which eventually hit the floor...culprit identified.

I had a chance today to get the coach outside and remove the cover. I blew the entire unit off which a leaf blower, condenser coils looked really good, and minimal debris was removed. The drain holes on each side of the condenser pan were clear as I was able to run a zip tie in both sides with ease.

I attempted to remove the condenser coil so i could inspect the pan itself for cracks or a leak point however I failed to get the coil out...the unit is old and hard lines along with a lot of extra screws made the process a little more difficult then I have seen on other units.

After reassembly I ran the heat pump for 30 or so minutes, no leaks as of yet, and also flew my drone on top of the roof and saw no water...I am not sure where else to go from here, would torqueing the (4) unit bolts possibly help (maybe loose gasket from water run off onto the roof?)

It may be worth noting that the front unit does run more often and for longer durations than the bedroom, obviously it is a larger space to heat but we did not experience any water in the bedroom either morning so I would venture to guess that humidity isnt a culprit in our situation.

Any specifics on removing the coil would be appreciated, again, I was not able to see the bottom of the drip pan so a crack could certainly be present. I believe this issue happened to the previous owner as there was a sticky, caulking type jelly at the base of bolts that secure the unit to the coach. Our leak came from the bolts on the rear side however and I cannot get in to see if those have a "sealant" around them.

Anyone have a similar experience with a solution before I end up taking the coach in? I hate to do it however removing the AC unit is a bit beyond what I am willing to tackle myself so any insight would be appreciated.

PS-Attempting to attach two photos, one with the cover removed to show the vintage of the unit and the other is the water droplet on the anchor bolt.

Clydro · 02-17-2025, 09:44 PM

I have an AC unit similar to yours, although it does not provide heat. Have you checked the filters? Dirty filters will cause our unit to leak. Just a thought.

DesertRat87 · 02-19-2025, 01:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Clydro

I have an AC unit similar to yours, although it does not provide heat. Have you checked the filters? Dirty filters will cause our unit to leak. Just a thought.

Yes, the filters are clean and after removing the top cover on the roof it was also surprisingly clean. Since this post I ran the heat pump for approx. 30 minutes and had no leaks since...will probably run the A/C here in the next few weeks and see if I can replicate the issue. With minimal responses here and trying the quick fix of ensuring the drain holes were open should I have another issue I will take it in to someone who does these types of repairs for a living.

workingonit · 02-19-2025, 01:14 PM

If you were running the unit in heat pump mode that reverses the refrigerant cycle and there is typically not much condensate involved in that process. If there were condensate it would be on the condenser coil which is the outside coil. In cooling mode the condensate is produced from the evaporator coil which is the coil you don't readily see. Not sure why you are trying to remove the coil but if you cut that coil loose you will lose all the refrigerant charge so I would recommend leaving it alone. The putty stuff you see is what I call Dicor. It comes in self leveling and non-self leveling. It's there to prevent water from running down your screws. I think you should get a tube of Dicor or the like and re-seal the roof penetrations. That will stop your leak unless it is internal.

DesertRat87 · 02-19-2025, 10:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by workingonit

If you were running the unit in heat pump mode that reverses the refrigerant cycle and there is typically not much condensate involved in that process. If there were condensate it would be on the condenser coil which is the outside coil. In cooling mode the condensate is produced from the evaporator coil which is the coil you don't readily see. Not sure why you are trying to remove the coil but if you cut that coil loose you will lose all the refrigerant charge so I would recommend leaving it alone. The putty stuff you see is what I call Dicor. It comes in self leveling and non-self leveling. It's there to prevent water from running down your screws. I think you should get a tube of Dicor or the like and re-seal the roof penetrations. That will stop your leak unless it is internal.

I appreciate the insight. I was attempting to lift the coil, not remove it, I should have been more clear. Lifting it up would allow me to remove me the catch or drip pan and inspect for cracks.

During the day I did run the AC, we didn’t notice the water until the following morning after running g the heat pump during the night.

I’m planning to run the AC this weekend and I’m hopeful to not recreate the issue. The Dicor is on the front two bolts, not sure if the rear mounting bolts have this but if not I can simply add some if needed.

Thanks again.