[ewegogrl]

OK, first the disclaimer... * I am 100% girl, I know nothing about HVAC, though I am quite savvy at thermostat operation." I'll try to give the Reader's Digest version here. Son comes in from playing, comes down to my office and asks why the 2nd story ceiling in our entry way (in our 1 1/2 year old home) has a huge hole in it, white ceiling debris and a ton of water all over the hand scraped hard wood floor below. Called plumber, 5 minutes into his investigation, he informs and shows me that I don't need a plumber but rather an HVAC man, as we stood and looked at a 6 inch diameter ice ball that had formed around the Freon line, just outside where it enters the main system in the attic. So I call an a/c repair man - comes out the next day when ice ball is now gone (though I have numerous pics of it on my phone). He informed me that this was occurring as the days were hot and our thermostats were set for this, but for those few nights around that time, the overnight low temps were falling quite a bit below where our thermostats were set. He further explained, but bottom line, this was the cause. He showed me two different pipes on both units in the attic, showed where he could install some device that would prevent this from ever happening again. Each was a little over $100, GREAT!!! Have not had the same issue since, ***the kicker... Insurance is paying for the $20,000 in damage repairs to the ceiling and hard wood floors, but someone behind some desk somewhere has decided to deny my claim for the $285 for the a/c repair bill, stating that the problem was a result of "Normal Wear and Tear". HUH? I know nothing about this stuff, but that denial explanation sure doesn't pass my smell test. Can anyone enlighten me on this one?

[hkstroud]

Insurance is paying for the $20,000 in damage repairs to the ceiling and hard wood floors

You are very fortunate.

deny my claim for the $285 for the a/c repair bill

That would be correct, unless your policy covers the operation and repair of the air conditioner.

I'm not a HVAC tech either but I would be very interested in seeing pictures of the ice balls. More interested in seeing picture of the device the HVAC tech installed.

[Grady White]

Not normal wear & tear unless the ice ball were caused by lack of maintenance i.e. changing filters. The only things which will cause ice to form are not enough air flow (dirty filter, bad fan motor, blocked vents, etc.) or low on refrigerant (leak [again not normal wear & tear])