TL;DR
A condensate trap is the U-shaped dip built into an air handler's or condensing furnace's drain line that holds a water seal so blower pressure cannot push or pull air through the drain instead of letting water flow. On draw-through coils, an untrapped drain lets the negative pressure hold condensate in the pan until it overflows.
What it means
A condensate trap is the U-shaped dip built into an air handler's or condensing furnace's drain line that holds a water seal so blower pressure cannot push or pull air through the drain instead of letting water flow. On draw-through coils, an untrapped drain lets the negative pressure hold condensate in the pan until it overflows. Manufacturers specify trap depth based on fan static pressure, and a dried-out or algae-clogged seal is a routine find behind summer drain backups and musty odors.
Where it sits in the glossary
Condensate trap is part of the Trade jargon group inside the ProFix Directory glossary. Browse every term in this category from the glossary index.
Why Ohio homeowners should know it
This is a term Ohio homeowners encounter when reading contractor quotes, hiring paperwork, or inspection reports. Understanding it well enough to ask one good follow-up question is usually all the protection a homeowner needs.
ProFix Directory keeps definitions short on the index page and saves the longer context — Ohio-specific rules, where the term comes from, and which ProFix tools touch it — for these per-term pages so the term is easy to cite and easy to share.
ProFix tools that touch this term
See also
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