--- title: "Cellar Coil Icing and Defrost Repair" description: "Stopping ice from forming on the cellar coil by finding what starves it, whether airflow, charge, controls or humid air coming into the room." url: "https://winecellarrepair.center/services/cellar-coil-icing-and-defrost-repair/" --- # Cellar Coil Icing and Defrost Repair Stopping ice from forming on the cellar coil by finding what starves it, whether airflow, charge, controls or humid air coming into the room. ## What the cellar coil icing and defrost repair involves. A cellar coil runs only a few degrees above freezing, so small changes push it over. Once a thin layer of ice forms, less air passes through the fins, the coil gets colder still, and within a day it can be a solid block with the cellar warming beside it. Most units defrost on their own by stopping the compressor and letting the fan run, controlled by a coil probe or a timer. When ice keeps coming back, the cause is almost always one of four things: too little air across the coil, from a slow fan, a dirty coil or a blocked return; too little refrigerant; a controller or coil probe that ends defrost too soon or lets the compressor run too long; or a room that takes in so much humid air that the coil loads with water faster than it can shed it. The technician thaws the coil gently, never with a sharp tool, and then checks each of those in turn. The drain gets attention too, because a thaw sends a lot of water at once, and a partly blocked line overflows exactly then. How the visit goes ### What it usually costs Low to moderate · Thawing an iced coil and correcting its cause The thaw and a setting or probe change stay low. When the cause turns out to be a fan or a leak, that repair is priced on its own row. ### Answers 6 problems Cellar Cooling Evaporator Coil Icing Up Wine Cellar Too Warm · Cellar Cooling Unit Leaking Water · Cellar Cooling Unit Fan Not Running · Wine Cellar Humidity Too Low · Cellar Cooling Unit Running Constantly ### Comes up most on Split-system cellar cooling Through-the-wall cellar cooling unit · Ducted cellar cooling unit · Ceiling-mounted cellar cooling ### Codes that lead here Ad2 · Ad2 · Ad3 CellarCool Ad2: the coil was still frozen when defrost timed out. ## Cellar coil icing and defrost repair, step by step. Run the unit through a cooling and defrost cycle, and explain what to watch for so it does not ice again. 01 Look at where and how the ice has formed, then thaw the coil with the compressor off and the fan running, catching the water. 02 Check the fan, the coil fins and the return path for anything that cuts the air across the coil. 03 Test the coil probe and the defrost settings in the controller, and read the charge on the sealed side. 04 Correct the cause: a fan, a probe, a setting, a clean coil or a leak repair, and clear the drain for the thaw water. 05 Run the unit through a cooling and defrost cycle, and explain what to watch for so it does not ice again. ## The problems it answers. 6 of them, from cellar cooling evaporator coil icing up to cellar cooling unit running constantly. [All problems](https://winecellarrepair.center/problems/) Most common ### Cellar Cooling Evaporator Coil Icing Up 5 causes, cheapest first Before you call ### Tell us this when you book 1. Whether the ice covers the whole coil or only part of it, and whether it has happened before 2. Whether the cellar door or any window is left open, or the room was recently opened up 3. What the set point is, and whether it was lowered recently 4. Whether water poured out when the ice last melted It also answers - [**Wine Cellar Too Warm** 6 causes · the collection is exposed](https://winecellarrepair.center/problems/cellar-too-warm/) - [**Cellar Cooling Unit Leaking Water** 6 causes · the collection is exposed](https://winecellarrepair.center/problems/cellar-unit-leaking-water/) - [**Cellar Cooling Unit Fan Not Running** 4 causes](https://winecellarrepair.center/problems/cellar-unit-fan-not-running/) - [**Wine Cellar Humidity Too Low** 4 causes](https://winecellarrepair.center/problems/cellar-humidity-too-low/) - [**Cellar Cooling Unit Running Constantly** 5 causes](https://winecellarrepair.center/problems/cellar-unit-running-constantly/) ## Low to moderate, on the site's scale. The thaw and a setting or probe change stay low. When the cause turns out to be a fan or a leak, that repair is priced on its own row. [Read the full cost guide](https://winecellarrepair.center/cost/) | Repair | Relative cost | | --- | --- | | [Start capacitor, contactor, compressor or sealed-system restriction](https://winecellarrepair.center/services/cellar-compressor-and-sealed-system-repair/) | | | [Leak search, joint or coil repair and a weighed charge](https://winecellarrepair.center/services/cellar-refrigerant-leak-repair/) | | | [Evaporator or condenser fan motor, blade or capacitor](https://winecellarrepair.center/services/cellar-evaporator-and-condenser-fan-repair/) | | | [Air or coil probe, display, transformer or control board](https://winecellarrepair.center/services/cellar-controller-and-sensor-repair/) | | | [Drain line, drain pan or condensate pump](https://winecellarrepair.center/services/cellar-condensate-drain-and-pump-repair/) | | | **Thawing an iced coil and correcting its cause** | low to moderate | | [Line set section, insulation or control cable](https://winecellarrepair.center/services/split-system-line-set-repair/) | | | [Humidifier module, humidity probe or settings](https://winecellarrepair.center/services/cellar-humidity-control-repair/) | | | [Cooling load and room survey](https://winecellarrepair.center/services/cellar-cooling-load-and-room-check/) | | ## Where it comes up most. Most bookings: Split-system cellar cooling, Through-the-wall cellar cooling unit, Ducted cellar cooling unit, Ceiling-mounted cellar cooling. [All wine cellar cooling unit types](https://winecellarrepair.center/types/) Codes that lead here - [`Ad2` CellarCool · Coil icing and defrost](https://winecellarrepair.center/error-codes/cellarcool-ad2/) - [`Ad2` WhisperKOOL · Coil icing and defrost](https://winecellarrepair.center/error-codes/whisperkool-ad2/) [All 3 codes that lead here](https://winecellarrepair.center/error-codes/#family-defrost) Often the same visit - [**Cellar cooling leak search and recharge** 4 problems in common · highest](https://winecellarrepair.center/services/cellar-refrigerant-leak-repair/) - [**Cellar cooling load and room check** 3 problems in common · lowest](https://winecellarrepair.center/services/cellar-cooling-load-and-room-check/) - [**Cellar evaporator and condenser fan repair** 3 problems in common · low to moderate](https://winecellarrepair.center/services/cellar-evaporator-and-condenser-fan-repair/) ### Split-system cellar cooling ### Through-the-wall cellar cooling unit ### Ducted cellar cooling unit ## The makes we see it on. 7 makes on this site, and the cellar coil icing and defrost repair on any of them. Each mark opens that make's own page. [All 7 brands](https://winecellarrepair.center/brands/) ## Cellar coil icing and defrost repair, where we come out. The cellar, the climate and the building all change how the cellar coil icing and defrost repair goes. These notes are about that, metro by metro. [All service areas](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/) [Tampa Bay](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/tampa-bay/) FL · 31 areas When a Tampa Bay cellar door is opened often in muggy weather, the evaporator takes in more moisture than it can shed, and a coil already short of airflow turns to ice, so the repair melts the ice, finds the cause and checks the defrost cycle where the model has one. - [Hyde Park](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/tampa-bay/hyde-park/) - [Davis Islands](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/tampa-bay/davis-islands/) - [Palma Ceia](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/tampa-bay/palma-ceia/) - [Westchase](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/tampa-bay/westchase/) - [Carrollwood](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/tampa-bay/carrollwood/) - [Belleair](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/tampa-bay/belleair/) - [St. Pete Beach](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/tampa-bay/st-pete-beach/) - [Palm Harbor](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/tampa-bay/palm-harbor/) [Orlando](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/orlando/) FL · 30 areas Guests in an Orlando rental who prop the wine room door open let humid air flood the evaporator, which ices and stops cooling, so the repair clears the coil, checks the door closer and seal and tests the defrost timing. - [Winter Park](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/orlando/winter-park/) - [Windermere](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/orlando/windermere/) - [Dr. Phillips](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/orlando/dr-phillips/) - [Bay Hill](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/orlando/bay-hill/) - [Lake Nona](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/orlando/lake-nona/) - [Heathrow](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/orlando/heathrow/) - [Celebration](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/orlando/celebration/) [Miami / South Florida](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/south-florida/) FL · 47 areas Condo owners in South Florida sometimes run a cellar well below 55 while they are away to protect the collection, and a coil working that cold in humid air ices over, so the repair restores the setpoint and checks the defrost heater or the off-cycle defrost the unit relies on. - [Brickell](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/south-florida/brickell/) - [Coconut Grove](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/south-florida/coconut-grove/) - [Coral Gables](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/south-florida/coral-gables/) - [Pinecrest](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/south-florida/pinecrest/) - [Key Biscayne](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/south-florida/key-biscayne/) - [Aventura](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/south-florida/aventura/) - [Sunny Isles Beach](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/south-florida/sunny-isles-beach/) - [Bal Harbour](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/south-florida/bal-harbour/) - [Miami Beach](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/south-florida/miami-beach/) - [Golden Beach](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/south-florida/golden-beach/) - [Weston](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/south-florida/weston/) - [Boca Raton](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/south-florida/boca-raton/) - [Palm Beach](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/south-florida/palm-beach/) [New York Metro](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/new-york/) NY · 75 areas A New York basement cellar cooled through a mild winter against a cold wall can ice its coil if the unit runs below the room temperature it is rated for, and the repair checks the defrost settings, the refrigerant charge and whether the unit should run at all in January. - [Upper East Side](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/new-york/upper-east-side/) - [Upper West Side](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/new-york/upper-west-side/) - [Tribeca](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/new-york/tribeca/) - [SoHo](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/new-york/soho/) - [Greenwich Village](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/new-york/greenwich-village/) - [Battery Park City](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/new-york/battery-park-city/) - [Brooklyn Heights](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/new-york/brooklyn-heights/) - [Park Slope](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/new-york/park-slope/) - [DUMBO](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/new-york/dumbo/) - [Forest Hills](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/new-york/forest-hills/) - [Great Neck](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/new-york/great-neck/) - [Southampton](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/new-york/southampton/) - [Scarsdale](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/new-york/scarsdale/) [Houston](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/houston/) TX · 36 areas In Houston an evaporator crusted with ice is often the sign of a cellar whose vapor barrier leaks humid air in through the walls, so the repair clears the ice and then tests the room for air leaks, since a new part alone would ice again by August. - [River Oaks](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/houston/river-oaks/) - [Memorial](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/houston/memorial/) - [Tanglewood](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/houston/tanglewood/) - [Greater Heights](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/houston/greater-heights/) - [Kingwood](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/houston/kingwood/) - [Bellaire](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/houston/bellaire/) - [Bunker Hill Village](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/houston/bunker-hill-village/) - [Piney Point Village](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/houston/piney-point-village/) - [Hunters Creek Village](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/houston/hunters-creek-village/) - [Sugar Land](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/houston/sugar-land/) - [Cinco Ranch](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/houston/cinco-ranch/) - [The Woodlands](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/houston/the-woodlands/) - [West University](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/houston/west-university/) [Chicago](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/chicagoland/) IL · 50 areas Chicagoland cellar units with outdoor split condensers can run low head pressure in winter, which drops the evaporator below freezing and ices it, so the repair checks the head-pressure control and the defrost cycle rather than only melting the coil. - [Lincoln Park](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/chicagoland/lincoln-park/) - [Near North Side](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/chicagoland/near-north-side/) - [West Loop / Near West Side](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/chicagoland/west-loop-near-west-side/) - [Wilmette](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/chicagoland/wilmette/) - [Winnetka](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/chicagoland/winnetka/) - [Glencoe](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/chicagoland/glencoe/) - [River Forest](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/chicagoland/river-forest/) - [Oak Park](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/chicagoland/oak-park/) - [Hinsdale](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/chicagoland/hinsdale/) - [Lake Forest](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/chicagoland/lake-forest/) - [Highland Park](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/chicagoland/highland-park/) - [Gold Coast](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/chicagoland/gold-coast/) - [Lakeview](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/chicagoland/lakeview/) [Los Angeles](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/) CA · 95 areas A Los Angeles ducted cellar unit with a clogged return filter starves the coil of air, and the coil ices even in a dry climate, so the repair replaces the filter, clears the coil and checks that no one closed a supply grille in the cellar. - [Beverly Hills](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/beverly-hills/) - [Bel Air](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/bel-air/) - [Holmby Hills](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/holmby-hills/) - [Brentwood](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/brentwood/) - [Pacific Palisades](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/pacific-palisades/) - [Santa Monica](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/santa-monica/) - [Hancock Park](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/hancock-park/) - [Studio City](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/studio-city/) - [Calabasas](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/calabasas/) - [Manhattan Beach](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/manhattan-beach/) - [Palos Verdes Estates](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/palos-verdes-estates/) - [Pasadena](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/pasadena/) - [San Marino](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/san-marino/) - [Malibu](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/los-angeles/malibu/) [San Diego](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/san-diego/) CA · 31 areas A small unit installed years ago for a mild San Diego room may start icing once a remodel adds glass or a larger door, since the coil now runs longer and colder, so the repair clears the ice and checks whether the room still matches the unit. - [La Jolla](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/san-diego/la-jolla/) - [Carmel Valley](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/san-diego/carmel-valley/) - [Point Loma](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/san-diego/point-loma/) - [Del Mar](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/san-diego/del-mar/) - [Rancho Santa Fe](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/san-diego/rancho-santa-fe/) - [Coronado](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/san-diego/coronado/) - [Encinitas](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/san-diego/encinitas/) - [Solana Beach](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/san-diego/solana-beach/) [San Francisco Bay Area](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/bay-area/) CA · 74 areas Bay Area cellars in cool basements call for so little cooling in winter that a unit set too low runs in short bursts and ices without a full defrost, and the repair checks the defrost setting and the fan delay after the compressor stops. - [Pacific Heights](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/bay-area/pacific-heights/) - [Presidio Heights](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/bay-area/presidio-heights/) - [Russian Hill](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/bay-area/russian-hill/) - [Noe Valley](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/bay-area/noe-valley/) - [Sea Cliff](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/bay-area/sea-cliff/) - [Hillsborough](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/bay-area/hillsborough/) - [Atherton](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/bay-area/atherton/) - [Woodside](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/bay-area/woodside/) - [Palo Alto](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/bay-area/palo-alto/) - [Los Altos Hills](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/bay-area/los-altos-hills/) - [Tiburon](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/bay-area/tiburon/) - [Piedmont](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/bay-area/piedmont/) - [Marina](https://winecellarrepair.center/locations/bay-area/marina/) For the heart of your home. ## Questions about the cellar coil icing and defrost repair. ### Can I chip the ice off my cellar unit's coil? Please do not. The fins and tubes are thin, and a puncture turns an icing problem into a refrigerant leak. Switch the compressor off, or the whole unit if the controller allows only that, let the fan run, and catch the water as it melts. ### Why does my cellar coil ice up only in summer? Humid summer air finds its way into a cellar through the door, gaps in the vapor barrier and anywhere the room was not sealed. The coil pulls that moisture out and it freezes on the fins. Sealing the room is often part of the cure along with the unit. ### Does setting the cellar colder cause icing? It can. Most cellar units are designed for about 50 to 65°F; setting one well below that runs the coil colder than it was built for. If you lowered the set point recently, return it to 55°F and see whether the icing stops. --- **[Read on the site: Cellar Coil Icing and Defrost Repair](https://winecellarrepair.center/services/cellar-coil-icing-and-defrost-repair/)** **[Book a visit with WineCellarRepair.center](https://winecellarrepair.center/schedule/)**