Furnace leaking water

[qwerty]

Leaking thru the exhaust thru the roof?

Yeah kind of what I was thinking, I had a rental where the exhaust would get ice up at the chimney from the hot/cold, then would thaw the ice back down the exhaust through the exchange.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

A condensing furnace cools the are exchanges so much heat from the spent combustion gases that the moisture condenses and has to be drained off. Combustion air has moisture in it and this is expanded in the flames to near steam or a vapor. As the air cools off the heat exchanger this vapor returns to a liquid state.
Have you noticed the water the drips out of the exhaust on a cool morning until the catalytic converter gets up to temp....same process.
My 95% furnace has a steady flow of water from the drain line when running. Almost as much as the A/C.

Gotcha...You learn something everyday!

Perry, is it possible the water is coming up through the floor, around that pipe? It looks like that is a black-iron pipe going into the concrete. Is it possible it's coming up from around it and then running over to your insulated duct work?

 

[kjf48197]

Check your drain line I had the same problem and there were minerals from the condensation in the drain. It is probably in one of the elbows..

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

It's also possible the pressure relief valve on your water heater is letting water pass. It doesn't look like that copper line is lined up with your floor drain.

 

[Miller Tyme]

These are condensing furnaces. Could be a drain line issue or more serious than that. Drain looks to be open site so that is probably not the issue. You do need to have this looked into.

Churchmouse has the correct answer, he knows his stuff.

 

[perry]

Gotcha...You learn something everyday!

Perry, is it possible the water is coming up through the floor, around that pipe? It looks like that is a black-iron pipe going into the concrete. Is it possible it's coming up from around it and then running over to your insulated duct work?

The black pipe is just a support for the water heater.

Check your drain line I had the same problem and there were minerals from the condensation in the drain. It is probably in one of the elbows..

Would I see water inside the furnace if that were the case? I seem to recall seeing water when it was stopped up during AC time.

It's also possible the pressure relief valve on your water heater is letting water pass. It doesn't look like that copper line is lined up with your floor drain.

It's lined up, and it's not wet inside. The floor is wet right now, but the outside of the PVC drain pipe is dry.

I shook the PVC drain pipe and it came loose right before the elbow at the top (the joint you see at the top middle of the second picture)... the inside of it feels dry.

Thanks for all the ideas so far!

 

[CathyInBlue]

I had water coming out the bottom of my furnace during cooling season, and it was the condensate drain that was plugged. It could also be rain/precipitation coming down the chimney/flue/exhaust if that leads directly to a non-sealed firebox inside the furnace and the top is open.

 

[infiremedic07]

I just thought I would post that I have no clue on this matter. Any adevice I could give would be anecdotal at best there it is better to not listen to me on this matter. IANAHVACR

 

[perry]

We were looking at the pictures this morning and my coworker things it may actually be the water heater that is leaking down down near the top of that black pipe / support because the foot of that support looks rusted. I'll have to feel around on it and see if it's wet.

I just thought I would post that I have no clue on this matter. Any adevice I could give would be anecdotal at best there it is better to not listen to me on this matter. IANAHVACR

Still working on those 50?

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

We were looking at the pictures this morning and my coworker things it may actually be the water heater that is leaking down down near the top of that black pipe / support because the foot of that support looks rusted. I'll have to feel around on it and see if it's wet.

Can't you take that cover off the front/bottom of the water heater?

And are you sure that copper, water heater, pressure relief valve is directly over the drain? It doesn't look like it in the photos. I've seen those go bad and start dripping water.

 

[perry]

It is the water heater... Goes to show you how handy I am.

Got two quotes for Bradford White 40 gallon gas water heaters.. one for $1045, one for $1095. Guess I need to look in to other brands!

 

[Bunnykid68]

Is that the price installed? I found gas heaters for $400-500 including a Bradford.

 

[perry]

Yes. 6 year Whirlpool, similar to this one, is $318 at Lowes. I can't imagine installation being more than a couple hundred through them.

 

[Bunnykid68]

Yes. 6 year Whirlpool, similar to this one, is $318 at Lowes. I can't imagine installation being more than a couple hundred through them.

I agree. Ask for help here on INGO. I bet money there is someone here willing to help out.

 

[perry]

I can't tell the difference between a leaky furnace and a leaky water heater when they're a foot apart... I need more than help. Gas and water... if either leaks, I'm in trouble. I think I'll let the pros deal with it.

 

[Bunnykid68]

I can't tell the difference between a leaky furnace and a leaky water heater when they're a foot apart... I need more than help. Gas and water... if either leaks, I'm in trouble. I think I'll let the pros deal with it.

I bet there are pros here. And that could save you a few hundred bucks.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

Good thing you caught it when it was just "leaking"!!!

 

[Brandon]

The water heater should be $500 and less depending on size/warranty you get with it.
The gas line shouldn't be tricky to tell if it's leaking... Soapy water on the connections, if you have bubbles you have a leak. The water lines going into it are pretty simple...

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

Why is there a drip of water on that drain valve, I wonder?

 

[perry]

Why is there a drip of water on that drain valve, I wonder?

Probably a very very slow leak from when I drained it last fall... There's lots of sediment inside that I hear knocking around so I try to drain it yearly. Guess it was so slow I didn't notice when I closed it back up. I've watched it for a couple minutes now and it hasn't actually dripped down yet. See what I mean though.... no skills with this sort of stuff.