ceilingcondensationhvacinsulation
A sweaty condensation drain line is dripping and causing mold in a ceiling panel:
The condensation drain pipe is lengthy and spans two rooms:
Is insulating the pipe an effective means to counter this drip / mold problem? If you have successfully solved this problem please state this in your response and include details / context. Thank you
Insulation on pipes should prevent moisture in the air from condensing on the pipes, by preventing the air from coming into contact with the pipes. What you are experiencing could be caused by a few things.
But why don't I see the problem when I remove the insulation?
Removing the insulation may be allowing the moisture to evaporate before it can build up and cause problems. the insulation could have been preventing evaporation, which allowed a noticeable amount of water to build up inside of it. Once the insulation reached its saturation point, the water had nowhere to go but onto the floor.
Condensate drip and accumulation are normal, especially during the summer months.
It is also very normal to find the drain lines terminated close to the house as you have described. Whether it is acceptable I guess could be argued based on the volume of water in question and where it is collecting.
If the accumulation of water is getting worrisome, you can buy some small diameter PVC pipe and reroute or extend your existing drain lines. You can even get creative, such as routing them into existing downspout drain lines, or directly burying the condensate drain lines themselves.
If you are worried about exterior-drained condensate freezing, you could bury a standard 4" drainage pipe to redirect your condensate. This pipe could accumulate your condensate via a catch basin, direct piping, or other means. The probability of an entire 4" pipe freezing, especially in the southeastern US, would be approaching zero.
Be sure to maintain a good slope when extending any lines, and drain to daylight any buried lines.
Additionally, you can drain your condensate to some acceptable locations inside your home, such as a plumbing drain (not a plumbing vent stack!).
Use this as a reference:
Best Answer
Yes. Isolating the pipe from moist air has been the common fix for decades.