Ceiling Registers Sweating

Condensation on your ceiling can cause water damage and promote the growth of mold or mildew.

Ceiling registers sweating.

The threshold for condensation to occur is that the temperature of the cold surface has to be below the dew point of the water vapor in the nearby air. A dirty air filter can indirectly cause water to drip from the ac vent in the ceiling by causing the ac to freeze up. If you ve noticed condensation on an ac vent air conditioner vents sweating or worse an ac vent leaking water you re right to be concerned and start investigating what might be going on. Condensation on your ceiling occurs when the attic space above is poorly ventilated and insulated.

Loosen the two screws holding the ceiling vent in place with a phillips screwdriver while keeping one hand on the. Since dew point temperature is the temperature at which water vapor condenses into water the result is sweating. It s a natural process and similar to the way a chilled soda begins to sweat once you take it out of the refrigerator on a hot day. As the frost melts usually after you turn off your ac the condensation can drain via your ac vents.

In an attic like this wintertime ceiling condensation can form when cold air from the attic hits your warm ceiling. This traps heat in the attic which then warms the ceilings. Sweating happens when the warm moist room air contacts the chilled diffuser face while the supply air temperature is below the dew point temperature. As the humidity level rises outdoors condensation will gradually begin to form on the surface of your air conditioning ducts.

I noticed just today that one and only one of the ceiling supply registers is dripping a lot of condensation. Improper ventilation and insulation of home attic space can produce high humidity levels and trap. It is almost 100 outside and humid today. The most common cause of ceiling condensation is an attic with too little insulation and ventilation.

If your air conditioner supply vents are sweating you have a cold surface the vent and near it you have air with water vapor in it. In summer when the air conditioning is on the reverse happens. The colder the air is inside the duct the greater the chance of ductwork sweating. The system is running on low speed so far anyway.

Setup a ladder below the ceiling vent with the greatest amount of condensation.