Electrics and gas
A sheet of defrost ice lies on the path under the outdoor unit. Is that ice proof the refrigerant circuit has failed?
No. That ice is not proof the refrigerant circuit has failed. A sheet of defrost ice on the path under the outdoor unit shows that melt water from a defrost cycle reached the ground and froze. Defrost is a normal function that sheds water off the coil. The visit did not test the refrigerant circuit, did not check the charge and did not measure performance. The survey records the ice. It has not diagnosed a leak, a failed compressor or a loss of charge.
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.
What is the fuller explanation?
Water leaving the unit has to go somewhere. On a cold path it can freeze into a sheet even when the machine is doing what it should. A blocked condensate route can make the sheet worse, and that is a drainage observation, not a refrigerant test. The home survey did not open the circuit and did not decide efficiency. Approved Document L is energy-performance guidance for building work, and this visit does not issue a building-regulations certificate because ice was lying on the path.
Ask a specialist if the icing repeats or if the path is unsafe, and keep that opinion separate from this note. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is a grant route in England and Wales toward a heat pump or biomass boiler, not in Scotland or Northern Ireland. The survey has not decided eligibility and has not quoted a grant. Do not invent a noise limit. Tell the solicitor the ice was seen and the circuit was not tested. Failure of the refrigerant side remains unproved.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Where is the ice sheet relative to the outdoor unit?
- What test of the refrigerant circuit does the report omit?
- Does the note distinguish defrost water from a diagnosed leak?
What are the typical next steps?
- Treat the ice as frozen defrost water, not as proof of failure.
- Ask a specialist only if the icing or the hazard needs a diagnosis.
- Do not tell a lender the refrigerant circuit has failed.
Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.
Also asked about this
Does ice on the coil fins mean the same as ice on the path?
Not in this note. Ice on the path is water that has left the unit and frozen. Ice on the fins would be a different observation about the coil. The report describes a sheet on the path. It does not test the refrigerant circuit and it does not prove that circuit has failed. Keep the path ice as a defrost-water finding.
Has the survey measured how the unit performs in defrost?
No. Performance was not measured, and no efficiency test was carried out. The sheet of ice shows melt water froze on the path. It does not show the charge, the compressor or the control of the defrost cycle. Approved Document L is not a certificate issued from this visit. The circuit’s health stays untested.