Are you experiencing water leaks from your window air conditioner? Major damage can occur if you don't act quickly.

To avoid damage to your home, turn off your window AC and get a towel to soak up the water.

After you've finished that, it's time to decide what your next steps will be.

I will provide step-by-step instructions for troubleshooting a leaky air conditioner in any situation in this article.

Clogged condensate drains should be checked

Most window AC leaks are caused by clogged condensate drains. So the first thing you should check is whether the condensate drain is clogged.

Condensate drains are used for what?

Air conditioners produce water when they cool the air. Cold air holds less moisture than warm air. So when the AC cools warm moist air, some of that moisture evaporates and becomes liquid.

As the AC runs, the liquid condensate collects in a drain pan. The condensate drain is a hole in the drain pan that allows excess water to drip out of the back of the window AC. If the hole gets clogged, then there is a possibility that the drain pan will overflow and start leaking water in your house.

Clogged condensate drains: why do they happen?

A condensate drain can become clogged for a variety of reasons:

• Dirt
• Mold
• Slime build-up
• Leaves
• Dead animals or insects
• Rust

Most newer window AC models are dripless, which means they won't normally drip water from the back. A clogged condensate drain won't always cause your Window AC water leakage.

Fixing a clogged condensate drain on a window air conditioner

If your window AC condensate drain is clogged, follow these steps:

1. When you're unclogging the drain of your window AC, unplug it from the power outlet.
    
2. Locate the condensate drain. Go outside and look for the drain hole on the back of the window AC. Take note of how large the hole is, because you'll need a tool that's the right size to clean it.
    
3. Unclog the condensate drain. Use a thin tool such as a needle or paperclip to poke inside of the condensate drain and dislodge the debris. You may be able to use a thin screwdriver if the drain hole is big enough. In most cases, this is enough to unclog the drain and get all the excess water out of the drain pan.

Plug the AC back in and test its operation after you unclog the condensate drain.

It may be necessary to open up the window AC and clean out its drip pan if the condensate drain gets clogged again.