Solution for A/C Condensate Drain Line that doesn't require emptying a bucket of water every day?

Question

I have a split A/C system in a room that runs on low 24 hours a day during Summer that unfortunately cannot be connected to any drain or pipe and which therefore requires a bucket outside to be used to collect the condensate from the condensate drain line in the exterior unit that sits on my balcony in my apartment building.

This is quite frustrating as the bucket has to be emptied every single day (once a day), so I'm looking for a better solution.

The bucket is already quite large and gets quite heavy at the end of the day when it's full, so maybe something that makes the water evaporate faster than normal so that I don't have to empty the water so often?

Does such a solution exist or am I condemned to a lifetime of emptying the bucket every night during Summer?

** 14 May 2015 EDIT **

I have not yet been able to solve this issue.

Without going into details, connecting the condensation drain line to any drain of any kind, drain line, drainage hole, ground, pumps, pipes, etc. is NOT an option, so I need an outside-the-box solution.

The A/C Condensate Drain Line seems to empty about 3 Gallons / 12 L per 24 hour period.

Potential solutions:

Humidifier

• Are there outdoor-friendly humidifiers that could get rid of 3 Gallons/ 12 L per day? The tank would not have to hold that much as the drain line would just drip the water constantly into the tank.

• CONSIDERATIONS: Would I need to use more than 1 humidifier and serialize them? Can a humidifier handle being on for 24 hours a day for 4 months straight? Can a humidifier handle the elements (e.g. could rain affect the circuitry or create any electrical issues)?

Plant/Grass garden

• My balcony has 37sqft / 3.4 m2 of area to play with but only 1 hour of direct sunlight (although plenty of indirect sunlight) per day, could I create a garden of plants/grass to absorb the water?

• CONSIDERATIONS: How much garden would I need? Which plants could meet this criteria? Could the balcony handle the weight of soil + plants + water?

NEW: Drip Tray + Humidifier Wick

• What about something like this plus several of these, could that evaporate 3 Gallons / 12L per day?

• CONSIDERATION: Would they get clogged from dirty city air? How many wicks would I need to evaporate all that water?

Any other outside-the-box solutions?

Would any of the solutions listed above work? If so, what specific details would I need to make it work? Are there any other solutions?

CLIMATE:

On the hottest Summer months, the average relative humidity is about 72%, with about 9 mean daily sunshine hours, 1-2 inches of monthly rain, and daily mean temperatures of about 76 F / 24 C (with average highs of 84 F / 29 C). Remember, however, that the balcony only receives about 1 hour of direct sunlight, although plenty of hours of indirect sunlight.

As you can see, it gets VERY dirty due to this being in the inner city next to a large avenue where a lot of cars run through creating a lot of direct air pollution, so any solutions that may clog need to take this into account. This is another reason I want to avoid having to open the balcony doors to empty it every night. In case it helps, the model of the outdoor unit is Mitsubishi MXZ-18TV.

Answer 1

While you can't have it drip off the balcony, you can turn it into a fine mist and blow it off. Even a fine sprayer would work fine, but you'll need a float switch to auto-activate it, and a pump. On the plus side, this will air condition your balcony as well.

Home Depot has a [ bucket-top misting fan][1] that looks like it would solve your problem. You would need to hook it up to a battery or adapter.

[1]:

Answer 2

If there really is no possibility of connecting it to a drain with its normal gravity flow, your only non-bucket option is to install a condensate pump, whose job is to raise the liquid up to a height where you can easily dump it in a drain or on the lawn or something. These are very common for basement installations of central air conditioning units where the condensate line is below the level of any drain plumbing.

Condensate Pump: (zoro.com) (diychatroom.com)

Answer 3

Set up a fan and drip the condensate into the the spinning fan blades. Have the fan blowing the water mist away from the balcony. The optimal fan to do this would be a high RPM high CFM small diameter fan. There are many IP52 water resistant computer case fans that can do this... like this one.

The fan can be powered by something like this.

I would use the existing mounting holes in the case fans and some rope/wire/zip-ties to securely mount the fan under one of the balcony railings. Then tie the condensate drain line to the railing and let it drip down in front of the intake side of the fan, such that the water gets sucked into the fan blades. Let the fan run constantly whenever you use the AC.

Having the fan blowing at the end of the condensate tube would be simpler, but would only work if the air speed from the fan is high enough.

Answer 4

OK, if you can't change it, and they own the A/C, and you previously agreed to the current state of affairs but are now annoyed by it, here's another idea: plant an extremely water-thirsty plant that will transpire a large amount of water every day. Then just water it with the condensate. Grass can have a high transpiration rate. Maybe you could have a little patch of turf on your balcony! Bamboo also transpires a lot and accept very moist soil. There are lots of options.

Answer 5

The solution for 100% closed cooling systems (like a refrigerator) is actually pretty elegant and simple: a pipe from the condenser coil (the part of the A/C on the "outside" that gets hot is run through a pan where water collected from the evaporator coil (the part that gets cold) sits. The fan that also cools the condenser blows over the water, which is now heating up because of the small part of the condenser coil in it, and the water evaporates into the "outside" air (i keep putting it in quotes because in the example of your refrigerator, its all indoor air, just outside the fridge).

Since you probably cant add a drain pan, are you at least close enough to the condenser unit for your apartment where you could let the water hit the condenser coil, and get heated and blown off by the already running fan? This might not take care of all of the water, but would at least increase the time it takes to fill the bucket up.

One more (probably obvious) thought is that the water is actually humidity from inside your apartment, condensing on the cold indoor coil of the AC unit, and collecting. If you decrease the outdoor air intrusion (better window seals, door seals, stoppers on dryer/bath vents, etc) you can ultimately decrease the amount of water the unit will pull out of the air.

And my final outside the box thought: can you just wait until no one is around, and then drain the bucket from your balcony? Like, if a timer went off automatically at 4am, and over the course of an hour it slowly drained the water down the side of the building, would anyone notice?

Answer 6

How about running the condensate line into a humidifier?

You will want to get a humidifier that is ultrasonic (not "warm mist"), since you just wanted the water vaporized, not heated. Cut a small hole in the top of the tank, and run your condensate line into it.

Note that since this will be outside you will want to protect it somewhat from the weather, and definitely use a GFCI plug.

Answer 7

One solution is to have a pump and a length of flexible plastic tubing that runs along the basement ceiling and into the drain for the clothes dryer.

Answer 8

I would also offer as an alternative: a wider and flatter bucket. If you used a wide pan the evaporation rate would increase and might even be to the point of not needing to be emptied.

Answer 9

Same solutions used for dehumidifiers should work: Let it drip into a tube run to somewhere appropriate (a drain, for example), or let it drip into a container that periodically pumps the water to somewhere appropriate. (My basement dehumidifier drains into the same pump that takes care of condensate from my boiler; its output hose is routed into the washing machine drain.)

Of course then you have a hose running through your apartment.

The only other thought I've got, assuming you can't join it into a rain gutter, would be to try to figure out how to route it so the water runs down the side of the building rather than being dumped out in midair. That would mostly keep it from falling on pedestrians.

Are there other occupants with air conditioners? Ask them how they've solved this.

Answer 10

There are lots of clever ideas here, but I think they are all over-engineered.

You simply need to get the water moved. Right now you are doing it manually with a bucket. I'd suggest some alternatives:

1. Have the condensate line exit the building through the wall, extend it to ground level. This would be the simplest and cheapest route.
2. Alternatively, you may not even have to extend it to ground level if you can have it exit the wall in a location that won't drip on anyone.
3. Buy a small pump. Run a line from the bucket to a sink in the house. You can then either turn it on yourself once a day or get fancy with a sump-pump type switch that will turn on automatically when the bucket is full. This is pretty much how condensate pumps work on central air units.
4. Buy a large dog. Have the condensate drain into his large water bowl. Granted, this means you now need to take the dog out more often. Not sure if that's easier than emptying the bucket. :)

Re: Humidifiers. Note that if you use a humidifier inside the house, you're defeating having the AC unit to begin with. A big benefit of an AC unit is that fact that it's dehumidifying the space for you. You want a dry cool, not a damp cool. An external humidifier could work. Though I can't imagine any humidifiers are designed for handling outside weather at all. Plus, now you have two appliances that need to be maintained.

Answer 11

In your situation, I would set up an arduino powered automatic pump.

Basically, you put the water level sensor in the bucket. Once the sensor gets tripped, the arduino activates the relay, which turns on the pump. You pump until the sensor is satisfied. You can discretely run tubing from the pump to the bathtub/window/outside. No more bucket emptying!

P.S. If you search on a certain auction site, you can buy the sensor, relay, and arduino board for less than $15 total.

Answer 12

Use a steel pot with hot plate underneath to evaporate it away problem solved!

Answer 13

I see from your profile that you have previously asked questions about various configurations of ductless mini-split heat pumps, and that you have (or had) a Daikin model. Is this a unit you bought and installed yourself? If so, it seems that you have already violated the "no modifications" rule and presumably you could do it again to make a modification involving a flexible drain pipe or condensate pump, either of which could redirect the flow to a less objectionable location.

If, on the other hand, the A/C unit is owned and was installed by the apartment, it's eminently reasonable to ask them to come up with a solution. They can't set it up in a certain manner and then tell you that their install own results in an impermissible condition. That's just ridiculous.