Rnat heat pump/AC system and why can't they get it right

old · Jun 17, 2011

Well some of you know my heat pump went out this winter had to have a new compressor put in at a tune of around $700 and that was under warranty to boot. So then had it rechecked 9 days ago because it doesn't seem to keep the house as cool as it should as in if I set it at 72 I'm lucky if it stays 74 or so in here. But then after dark I have to reset it or you freeze and it if set at 72 will cool it down to 70 before it shuts off. Well today the wife says is it hot in here or is it me. I go and check and sure enough it is 76 in the house and the unit is working but not cooling much. Checked the A coil and one side is froze up all the way and the other side part way. Check the cool line coming into the house and it has ice covering it but yet 9 days ago the guy could not find any thing wrong and charged me $86 for not finding a thing what has happened to good service theses days

641Dave · Jun 17, 2011

DON'T GET ME STARTED!

We tried to sleep in 90° temps last night since ours is out again. Our first repairman added refrigerant and when we called him back about the flash freezing he was sick and couldn't come out.

Second repairman filled it full of refrigerant and when he had to come back he said he thinks the reversing valve was stuck. Then his dad comes out and said it's okay and that he couldn't find a problem.

Wednesday night it gets warm in the house again so we call a new repairman. He says the metering valves is bad.

I'm sick of it and it's got me so mad at myself for not understanding what's going on with it. Needless to say I've been reading up on heat pumps and air conditioning today and trying to get an idea of what's going on, but at the moment, we're at the mercy of whatever the next repairman says. :x

ShadetreeRet · Jun 17, 2011

Seems like a lot of us have been in the same boat lately. Two weeks ago, when we had an early heat wave and the temp. hit 95 the compressor went out on my 10 year old unit. It had been serviced for various problems in the past and the independent contractor that has been servicing it said might as well install a new unit. Did so to the tune of $2350.00. But it only took him two days to get it and he installed it on Saturday morning. Has a 10 year warranty on parts, so I'm optimistic about it. But, yes, it does seem difficult to find a dependable service company anymore.

VicS. · Jun 17, 2011

Knock on wood ours is working flawlessly. Before I Bought from the young man, I talked to him at length to see if he understood the principles of a heat pump. I got 3 bids and you would be surprised at the people selling them that was just parts changers. We did have a bad thermostat. We have a non programmable one now. It will keep the temp within one degree. The programmable one was just to complicated for us to understand. That might be your problem. Vic

smallercrawler · Jun 17, 2011

Had system with minor leak in it, needed about 1# juice every year or so for best cooling, "service tech?" said they couldn't find leak. Went with new company, called in problem, said they'd be right out-came out (late), said too cold (~75deg.) to work on unit, charged $85 for showup, "call back when warmer". Oh H*** yes!!! Finally found small single man operation, he came out when he said, worked about 4 hours with various sniffers, found and ACTUALLY FIXED leak, evacuated and recharged system, and installed new filter dryer. EXTREMELY reasonable charge-"just drop it in the mail". System has worked perfectly now for almost 3 years, guess who gets first shot at new system when required. Keep looking there are still some ethical people out there, luckily I found one.

Dblair · Jun 17, 2011

it's probably leaking out the charge , most likely the cause of the compressor going out . half a frozen coil can be a leak or your blocking the return air , meaning dirty filter or turning of supply ducts, blocking the return with furniture, and driving a nail in the refrigerant lines hanging a picture. the nail is a rare one but I've seen it . check these things out first before you call a service man and save yourself some bucks . hope this helps out . glad I don't do it anymore.

old · Jun 17, 2011

New filter on the 8th of this month the same day the guy said it was just fine. All ducts open other then the one in the boys room, he is in the navy and in Kenya Africa so he does not need that room cooled right now. The guy who did tell me it was just fine did leave the gauge hook up caps off so figure it might be leaking there but I'll not touch them or I might get a well you did this or that

Dblair · Jun 17, 2011

well you've done all you can do then . looks like a small leak . let it thaw and start it up again . see if the big line outside is cold before the coil starts freezing ,it maybe overnight before it frosts. cut the compressor off and let the fan on the indoor unit run to defrost faster.

MSD · Jun 17, 2011

I assume you had the fins cleaned when the new compressor was put in. I have to clean mine every year. You would be surprised at all the fine stuff that will collect in them. Mostly dandelion and cotton wood seed that you see floating around that collect in there.

JMOR · Jun 17, 2011

(quoted from post at 21:25:02 06/17/11) I assume you had the fins cleaned when the new compressor was put in. I have to clean mine every year. You would be surprised at all the fine stuff that will collect in them. Mostly dandelion and cotton wood seed that you see floating around that collect in there.

blair is probably correct...a small leak...so small they usually can't find it even with a $500 leak detector, because it is really dozens of very, very, very small leaks in the thin a$$ed elbow joints of the evaporator. They are all junk and 10 years is really OLD age for them. Many hot/cold cycles on paper thin copper & they are done!

Bob · Jun 17, 2011

Since you had it checked, I'd HOPE it's full of refrigerant.

Poor airflow will lead to freezeup.

FIRST, let it thaw out, then verify there's adequate airflow through it... filter(s) clean, fan clean and up to speed, "A" coil not clogged with dust and lint on the air intake side (probably gonna have to get your face and a flashlight in an impossible location), nothing else in the furnace/air handler clogged up, ductwork adequate and ALL registers wide open.

ohenry · Jun 17, 2011

I have about 40 years of AC experience and I am ashamed at he guys today who only want to install new equip. That said-----Old you have a serious leak that probably lent to the compressor brning out. It could be in your inside coil and you would need another. Repairing the coils is only a practice in futility. Just to be sure, get a sudsy bottle of soap water and check all the solder joints for bubbles(leaks). Then you will know.

ohenry · Jun 17, 2011

See my post for old. Now, it is evident you also have acquired a leak some place or you could have a bad fan. The metering valve is just an orifice and very hard to get stuck. and adding freon wont help, How old is your system? If you have a leak it is also possibly in the coil. Do your self a big favor and get a new system. The cost of service and FREON is sky high and to keep adding will break you. If you do get a new system ask for a lineset pressure check (do it anyhow) to make sure there is no leak in the lines.

Phil9N3667 · Jun 17, 2011

I had my upstairs unit to quit cooling two weeks ago and I hooked my gauges up to it while it was running. Had 150 on the high side and 45-50 on the low side. The return refrigerant line was cool to the touch but not as cold as I thought it should be. Got my BIL to come out and check it (been running his own heat/ac business 29 years). First thing he hooked up was a Fluke digital thermometer to the low side line that also had a separate outside air temp probe and then hooked a gauge to the low side. As he explained it, the low side line needed to be within a degree or so of the air temp going back to return vent. Took less than a pound to get it back up to snuff. The next week, my downstairs unit killed the start capacitor for the compressor! Helps to have connections! Sounds like you've got a low charge issue.

okierob · Jun 17, 2011

When they installed the new compressor, they should of ran argon or nitrogen threw the lines when soldered in. If they did'nt there may be some flaking inside the joints and restricting the orfice or capillary tube.

But it sounds like there is a small leak. After they instaled the compressor they should of used a micron guage when pulling the vaccumn.This would of showed a leak or any moisture in the system.You can not tell how far the vaccumn is with just a guage set.

Hopefully they did a flush on it before installing the new compressor. If there was any acid in the system , your new compressor will probably be out in a yr due to the corrosive acid left in the system. It will eat the insulation off the windings and short it out.

It's been yrs since i fooled with a heat pump.Never did like them.

M-MAN · Jun 17, 2011

While it may very well have leaked out some refrigerant with those caps off, that's not your main problem & recharging won't fix it. Both coil's need to be cleaned as well as the inside blower to start with but I suspect your problem is deeper than that. I suspect you have a blockage in the refrigerant circuit. A compressor burnout is the worst thing that can happen to a heatpump & it's best to replace everything when that happens instead of fixing it. To find the blockage let the heatpump run about 15 minutes & unplug the indoor fan. Wherever it starts freezing first is where your problem is. You will need to plug the fan back in and do this a couple times so you can check inside and outside. I doubt your hvac guy will do this even though he should so it's up to you.

buickanddeere · Jun 18, 2011

Problem is that most service people and techs in any industry, don't know. They lack the knowledge and understanding of how the machine is supposed to operate.
Most repairs are done by either guessing. Or they have seen a system work after something was replaced.
The more a machine has internal parts and workings and reading instrumentation is required. The level of understanding drops farther.

Rnat heat pump/AC system and why can't they get it right

old

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641Dave

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ShadetreeRet

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VicS.

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smallercrawler

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Dblair

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old

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Dblair

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MSD

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JMOR

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Bob

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ohenry

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ohenry

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Phil9N3667

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okierob

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M-MAN

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buickanddeere

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