Which statement best describes where condensate pumped from a furnace or air conditioner should be discharged?

Which statement best describes where condensate pumped from a furnace or air conditioner should be discharged?

• A. Discharge to the outdoors directly.
• B. Into an appropriate drain or drainage system per code.
• C. Into the refrigerant line.
• D. Into a separate septic tank.

Answer: (B)

Condensate from a furnace or air conditioner is essentially water that results from removing humidity, so it should be disposed of through a proper drain rather than being dumped somewhere uncontrolled. The correct approach is to route that condensate into an appropriate drain or drainage system in accordance with the code. This keeps moisture under control, prevents water damage and mold growth, and ensures the discharge is vented and treated as part of the building’s plumbing system. Discharging directly outdoors or into the refrigerant line isn’t appropriate: the outdoor splash can create nuisance or drainage issues and bypass the building’s approved drainage setup, and mixing condensate with refrigerant lines is obviously unsafe and not allowed. Similarly, sending condensate into a septic tank isn’t correct because septic systems aren’t designed for continuous condensate flow and it’s not how the system is intended to handle this water.

Condensate from a furnace or air conditioner is essentially water that results from removing humidity, so it should be disposed of through a proper drain rather than being dumped somewhere uncontrolled. The correct approach is to route that condensate into an appropriate drain or drainage system in accordance with the code. This keeps moisture under control, prevents water damage and mold growth, and ensures the discharge is vented and treated as part of the building’s plumbing system.

Discharging directly outdoors or into the refrigerant line isn’t appropriate: the outdoor splash can create nuisance or drainage issues and bypass the building’s approved drainage setup, and mixing condensate with refrigerant lines is obviously unsafe and not allowed. Similarly, sending condensate into a septic tank isn’t correct because septic systems aren’t designed for continuous condensate flow and it’s not how the system is intended to handle this water.