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Heating & Air Conditioning Design Dilemma DIY

Is there any way to redirect this AC pipe?

Carly St. Myers

2 months ago

Hi! We are renovating our laundry room. It has doorways to a half bath, the kitchen, and garage. There is a PVC pipe (about 1" diameter) that runs from the closet area where the furnace is. It runs across the half bath entry - is there any way to reroute this? We are getting new flooring and I would love to get rid of this tripping hazard. I don't know if it can go above the doorway or not.

Also, is there any way to hide all of the other furnace things coming from that closet area? I am a new homeowner so I am not positive what all of these things are called. Thank you!

Featured Answer

Kendrah

2 months ago

I'm no expert, but suspect that the 1" pipe is a condensate drain pipe and the water needs to flow downwards, and not upwards, because those don't tend to have a pump. So having it above the door would not make sense. Perhaps the drain can be moved, perhaps if you are ripping up the floor the pipe could go in the floor, perhaps your furnace could be relocated. My guess is that there is a drain there where your bathroom plumbing and washing machine drain to and this is drains there as well.

Your overhead ducts and pipes could be enclosed in soffits.

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Comments (9)

sktn77a
2 months ago
Is the floor there on a slab or crawlspace/basement?
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i answered you question on the plumbing forum.
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I get the feeling they don't understand your answer (due to the post on HVAC forum) even though it is good advice. Chama, there are two drains coming from your HVAC unit for condensate. The primary drain is normally used and drains somewhere not visible. The secondary drain drains somewhere visible in the case that the first one gets clogged so that you notice there is a problem. You need to unclog the primary drain or hire someone to come out and do it.
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Carly St. Myers
Original Author
2 months ago
@Kendrah Yes, I think you are correct about the type of pipe. Thanks for the quick response!
Carly St. Myers
Original Author
2 months ago
@sktn77a This is the lower half of a split level, so I believe there would be concrete below the flooring here. Not positive though..
sktn77a
2 months ago
last modified: 2 months ago
Well, if it's on a slab, you'll need to jackhammer a trough to the sump for the condensate drain under the floor before you lay the new flooring.
Carly St. Myers thanked sktn77a
Paul F.
2 months ago
You need a little inexpensive sump pump that will pump the condensation water up and through the wall to the sink drain pipe of the half bath.
Carly St. Myers thanked Paul F.
klem1
2 months ago
The pipe in question is condensate drain that can inexpensivly be ran overhead simply by installing a pump which is common in situations like this. As for concealing ductwork and other pipes, dropped ceilings and/or fur-down chase are solutions.
Carly St. Myers thanked klem1
PRO
Charles Ross Homes
2 months ago
Before redirecting the condensate into another drain, I'd want to know if the furnace is a high-efficiency, condensing-type furnace. If so, it may be necessary to keep the condensate drain segregated from the home's DWV system or to install a neutralizer to address the acidity of the condensate--particularly if the home has a septic system.
Carly St. Myers thanked Charles Ross Homes
3onthetree
2 months ago
It looks like a condensing vent rather than B-vent (because they went wild on wrapping the foil insulation on it). Looks like they wrapped the lineset and probably the cat too.

As said, you can get a condensate pump. Determine if you can poke through an exterior wall right there instead of going to the Laundry floor drain. Also make sure you have clearance/access around the furnace.
Carly St. Myers thanked 3onthetree

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