It seems impossible for your air conditioning unit to freeze up when it is 90 degrees or more outside, right? Well, to be honest, it really is possible for it to happen, and it is actually much more common than you might think. While your first thought may be to grab the phone and call a professional HVAC contractor, there may be a few things that you can do on your own to fix the problem. In any case, here are a couple of possible problems and their solutions to a frozen air conditioner:

Problem #1: Inadequate Air Flow.

One reason that your air conditioner has frozen up is due to the fact that there is not sufficient air flow. When air flows over the evaporator coils, its heat is lost. However, if there is not sufficient air flowing, then the refrigerant can get too cold, which could lead to the freezing of the coils. In addition, the refrigerant could be too cold when it returns to the compressor outside of the home, which could damage it (and it's quite costly).

To fix this problem, you may just need to replace the air filter. Dirty and clogged filters keep adequate air from flowing throughout the HVAC system. You should check your filter each month and change it as needed.

Problem #2: Filthy Evaporator Coils

Another culprit of a frozen air conditioner could be that your evaporator coils are just dirty. The coils need to be cleaned frequently in order to remove any accumulated dirt, debris and even mold. Otherwise, the coils will be unable to absorb heat from the air and won't be able to properly cool your house. Dirty coils can also lead to debris and clogs within the unit's drain line, which could result in water damage around the interior HVAC unit.

To fix this solution, the evaporator coils need to be cleaned. While this can be done yourself, it is usually best left up to a professional if you aren't sure how to do it. Now, as a general rule, this is a task that is performed by a professional during annual HVAC services appointments. However, it is important to check with the technician to ensure that this is something that is on the list of maintenance tasks before simply assuming that it is done.

If you believe you are experiencing a frozen air conditioning unit or are dealing with any other HVAC problem, you can try to fix it yourself or you can call an air conditioning and heating repair expert to handle it for you.