Today i noticed water leaking from a section of the pvc exhaust pipe which travels upward from the furnace across the ceiling and out of basement wall where it vents into my backyard.
Furnace pvc exhaust pipe leaking.
Look at your flue pipe.
Condensation from air conditioning coils contains bacteria that can form slime and clog the condensate pan drain tube.
There should be no water involved with a standard efficiency furnace.
That way should there be a problem with the furnace that causes the exhaust temperature to exceed design the exhaust vent system has almost 40 more capacity to handle the excess heat before it reaches the point where it can fail.
If your furnace exhaust pipe or flue pipe is leaking it can be a sign of a much bigger problem.
Here s what to look for.
I had a high efficiency furnace installed in march of this year.
If there is an issue with the condensation pump you will usually be able to see water dripping from the pump.
You need to call in a professional to assess what s going on.
A standard efficiency furnace extracts some heat from the combustion gases and quickly vents them out the exhaust or flue pipe.
Its job is to pump water toward the drain.
Bad clogged condensate pump.
A condensate pumplooks like a small white box connected to the pvc drain pipe on your furnace.
If you have a condensing furnace it s likely leaking due to any of the following issues.
A clog or issue in the condensate system.
When you see water puddling around the furnace with the a c running you have a clogged condensate drain tube.
To be more specific the pipe that comes out of the unit is attached to this leaking section which is attached to a pvc elbow then another piece of pipe and so on.
You can prevent slime and eliminate drain tube clogs in two easy steps.
Despite the confusion the safe practice would suggest the use of pvc schedule 40 pipes for the air intake vent on the furnace and cpvc for the exhaust flue vent given its higher service temperature.
If he or she rules out a condensation leak there are other possibilities all still requiring a professional.
A bad heat exchanger.
If you have a condensation leak with a standard efficiency then its exhaust or flue pipe may be incorrectly sized.
As the gases sit in the flue they cool eventually forming condensation which can leak out of your furnace into the surrounding area.
To see if the issue is the vent pipe follow these steps.
If you have a conventional furnace the two most likely reasons for dripping water include.
