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Hello there, I have a question about central air conditioning. We have had the warranty repair guy out and he assures us there is nothing wrong with the Air Conditioner and he used a tool that detects cold air coming out of the vents, but he did install a hard starter for our compressor. The symptoms are that not long after one household member turns the thermostat down under 70 degrees, the house gets cold but then abruptly the cold air stops and the house heats up rapidly. I've tried turning the air off and running the fan for 30 minutes and I've also tried flipping the breaker. If I turn the thermostat back up above 70 the a/c seems to eventually recover. I'm not sure what, if anything, that I've tried is actually working and the repair guy said that turning the thermostat too low shouldn't be causing the problem, although it always seems to happen not long after somebody turns it down. It would help a lot to have a better understanding of what might be happening, and what I might be able to do to prevent a recurrence. I hope you can help.
Optional Information: Brand: Trane XR13 Type of HVAC: Air Conditioner Already Tried: Turning the a/c off and running the fan for 30 minutes, flipping the breaker, raising the thermostat above 70 degrees.
Hello there! I'm Norman but you can call me Norm. Let's see what I can do to get you some answers today. I'm ready to get started whenever you are.
So did the repair man just install the hard start?
hi Norm! Yes he installed it late last week.
Have you had the problem re-occur since then?
yes, had some cold air but it's gone warm again and I can't help but wonder if somebody turning the thermostat too low is contributing to it
No, when you set the thermostat to cool the unit will cycle on regardless of how low you set it. There is not difference in 2 degrees lower and 5 degrees lower. Now if you did that for heating and had a heatpump/airhandler combination with a heater kit it might kick the heat strips on, that doesn't apply in cooling though.
ty ty, it's good to know the details on that!
Also, did the warranty guy put a set of gauges on the unit when he was there?
no, no gauges
WOW
Was he an HVAC technician?
Did he use a clamp on meter or anything to check the compressor out, anything like that?
he put a new motor in for the fan
he gave us a quote on installing a new compressor, the part is covered but the labor isn't
Did he replace the capacitor when he did that?
they had put in a capacitor a few months ago. sorry I'm taking so long on the questions, another household member usually deals with this. she is trying to hunt up her old receipts right now.
It's not problem. I fear that someone servicing equipment who does not even hook up a set of gauges to the equipment may not have given you the best level of service that could be provided.
The hard start he installed is used to assist the compressor on start-up. Somehow either he thinks your compressor is failing or he just wanted to make a buck.
I wouldn't be too surprised if the compressor is failing. I don't feel real good about him though, he really didn't seem to want to look me in the eye when I met him.
I don't trust people like that.
Eye contact is #1 in my book, especially when selling someone something.
ita
It sounds like you may have an issue with the compressor. When it runs for too long it may either be overheating or possibly tripping out on hi-limit. The only way to know about the limit (pressure) would be to connect gauges to it.
any way to save the existing one, or is it best to replace it when it starts behaving this way?
Could also be the thermostat having intermittent issues. If that were the case you would probably have problems all the time.
You don't save compressors, when they are gone- they are gone.
any way to test if it's the thermostat?
personally speaking I wouldn't trust the guy you have to replace a compressor, thats a major repair that requires attention to detail and correct proceedure.
As for the thermostat that would be very hard to diagnose. You would need to check voltages but you have to do it when you catch the problem happening. Like i mentioned before you would surely have the problem at other times if it were the thermostat.
One more thing about the compressor, the first thing we can do to prolong the compressor from failing when we notice starting issues is install a hardstart. This give it an extra electrical boost to get it going.
ty ty ty you have helped me a great deal. Is there anything else I should consider?
Consider finding another service company, lol
lol!
Sorry, had to get in one more poke!
hee hee
I think you are on the right track. I would assume you are either having compressor problems or a refrigerant charge problem.
The need gauges to check that though.
ty ty I appreciate your help
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you too!
Experience: NC/VA Master HVAC & Gas, Air Balance, LG Master Commissioner
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