[rogerfisher]

I know this has probably been discussed a lot. I've searched and cannot
find anything that specifically addresses my problem.

I recently bought a home in Western Kentucky. The house has a heat pump.
When the temperature reaches low 40's and below, the alt button lights up.
From what I understand, this is normal and indicates the heat strip is
coming on in conjunction with the heat pump in order to keep up with the
heating needs. Yesterday, the registers started blowing out nothing but
cold air. Even with the thermostat turned up to high 80s, the temperature
in the house is 67 degrees maximum. I turned it to emergency heat, which I
believe means that the heat strip is being used without the assistance of
the heat pump. Still no warm air. I have called a repair center and they
will be here sometime next week. We have a gas log fireplace in the
meantime which keeps the house fairly warm, so at least I am not freezing in
the meantime.

Since the house is only 4 years old, I wonder what could have caused this.
The previous owners had the filthiest filter in the cold air return that I
have ever seen. I doubt very seriously if it had been changed in the four
years that they owned the house. I change ours every month. Could this
have led to the problem? Any thoughts are very much appreciated.

Debbie

[Howard]

Generally the power to a heat pump comes from several sources, a
breaker for the fan, a twin breaker for the outside unit and one or
more twin (220 volt) breakers for the strip heaters. You may want to
check to see that all the circuit breakers are on. There may also be
one outside by the heat pump unit instead of a disconnect. Remember
that you flip the breaker first to off then back on as the tripped
position is in the middle and sometimes hard to see. Also a modern
thermostat does not cause more heat to be produced at a higher setting
unless its a multi stage model. Any setting high enough to get the
heat operating gets full heat production, if the unit is working. Good
luck, after service you may find that the unit was low on refrigerant
and actually works a bit better.

On Dec 9, 11:46 am, "rogerfisher" wrote:
I know this has probably been discussed a lot. I've searched and cannot
find anything that specifically addresses my problem.

I recently bought a home in Western Kentucky. The house has a heat pump.
When the temperature reaches low 40's and below, the alt button lights up.
From what I understand, this is normal and indicates the heat strip is
coming on in conjunction with the heat pump in order to keep up with the
heating needs. Yesterday, the registers started blowing out nothing but
cold air. Even with the thermostat turned up to high 80s, the temperature
in the house is 67 degrees maximum. I turned it to emergency heat, which I
believe means that the heat strip is being used without the assistance of
the heat pump. Still no warm air. I have called a repair center and they
will be here sometime next week. We have a gas log fireplace in the
meantime which keeps the house fairly warm, so at least I am not freezing in
the meantime.

Since the house is only 4 years old, I wonder what could have caused this.
The previous owners had the filthiest filter in the cold air return that I
have ever seen. I doubt very seriously if it had been changed in the four
years that they owned the house. I change ours every month. Could this
have led to the problem? Any thoughts are very much appreciated.

Debbie

[bill allemann]

If no heat is produced in the E-Heat Setting, you may have a thermostat
problem, or the strip heat itself has failed.
There is probably only one breaker to the air handler, and even though the
fan is running, one leg of the 220 may not be present.
Quick check of the outputs of the breaker would show that (or feed terminals
in the air handler).

In standard heat mode, have you verified that the compressor is running?
You can't miss it when it is on.

As far as low temps when everything is running, you may need to have the
charge checked. It should make fairly
warm air when the outdoor is at 40 or so. A service tech can check
temperature at a register and will know about what it should be for given
ambient temps.

hth
bill


"rogerfisher" wrote in message
news
I know this has probably been discussed a lot. I've searched and cannot
find anything that specifically addresses my problem.

I recently bought a home in Western Kentucky. The house has a heat pump.
When the temperature reaches low 40's and below, the alt button lights up.
From what I understand, this is normal and indicates the heat strip is
coming on in conjunction with the heat pump in order to keep up with the
heating needs. Yesterday, the registers started blowing out nothing but
cold air. Even with the thermostat turned up to high 80s, the temperature
in the house is 67 degrees maximum. I turned it to emergency heat, which
I believe means that the heat strip is being used without the assistance
of the heat pump. Still no warm air. I have called a repair center and
they will be here sometime next week. We have a gas log fireplace in the
meantime which keeps the house fairly warm, so at least I am not freezing
in the meantime.

Since the house is only 4 years old, I wonder what could have caused this.
The previous owners had the filthiest filter in the cold air return that I
have ever seen. I doubt very seriously if it had been changed in the four
years that they owned the house. I change ours every month. Could this
have led to the problem? Any thoughts are very much appreciated.

Debbie

[DK]

On Sat, 9 Dec 2006 10:46:26 -0600, "rogerfisher"
wrote:

I know this has probably been discussed a lot. I've searched and cannot
find anything that specifically addresses my problem.

I recently bought a home in Western Kentucky. The house has a heat pump.
When the temperature reaches low 40's and below, the alt button lights up.
From what I understand, this is normal and indicates the heat strip is
coming on in conjunction with the heat pump in order to keep up with the
heating needs. Yesterday, the registers started blowing out nothing but
cold air. Even with the thermostat turned up to high 80s, the temperature
in the house is 67 degrees maximum. I turned it to emergency heat, which I
believe means that the heat strip is being used without the assistance of
the heat pump. Still no warm air. I have called a repair center and they
will be here sometime next week. We have a gas log fireplace in the
meantime which keeps the house fairly warm, so at least I am not freezing in
the meantime.

Since the house is only 4 years old, I wonder what could have caused this.
The previous owners had the filthiest filter in the cold air return that I
have ever seen. I doubt very seriously if it had been changed in the four
years that they owned the house. I change ours every month. Could this
have led to the problem? Any thoughts are very much appreciated.

Debbie


The heating strips are sometimes on a separate breaker or disconnect.
Mine are and I leave them off as I don't them coming on accidentally.

[udarrell]

rogerfisher wrote:

Since the house is only 4 years old, I wonder what could have caused this.
The previous owners had the filthiest filter in the cold air return that I
have ever seen. I doubt very seriously if it had been changed in the four
years that they owned the house. I change ours every month. Could this
have led to the problem? Any thoughts are very much appreciated. Debbie


Yes, it could have led to some serious problems because the lint &
debris begins to bypass the loaded filter.
This results in blower wheel blades being loaded with lint which greatly
reduces airflow.
Additionally, the indoor cool will be loaded with & blocked with lint
resulting in very poor heat transfer & greatly reduced airflow.
Static pressures, if checked may not every high due to the reduced
output of the blower wheel.
Check the blower wheel for lint loaded blades, if loaded, call a tech
out to clean the coil & blower!
Also, after the correct airflow through the clean system is established,
have the charge properly balanced.
Read all linked pages below & learn how to save money by being properly
informed. - udarrell

--
PROPER A/C UNIT & DUCTWORK Sizing is over 70% of Operating Efficiency
http://www.udarrell.com/proper_cfm_b...syste ms.html

Air Conditioning Installations Now Produce 95% Failure Rate
http://www.eeba.org/conference/2004/...s/Proctor1.pdf

Solving - External Static Pressure (ESP)
http://www.udarrell.com/udarrell-air-conditioning.html

[Mark]

Yes, it could have led to some serious problems because the lint &
debris begins to bypass the loaded filter.


Really?
How does it do that. I have never seen a BYPASS on an AIR filter.

Mark

[m Ransley]

Fine dirt actualy gets pulled through a clogged filter as the pressure
increases, it does not just sit in the filter. Even the better large
media types of 4" thick retain only a percentage of dirt, none filter
100% on a first pass. First pass on a April Air 4" might be 70-90%
depending on the dusts micron size. When they are clogged shut the air
must still get by, and so will dust. Different micron size particles
pass at different rates, your better large media are rated on this. If
the filter used was a regular 1" type you could have a mess on your
coils. My neighbor complained of no heat, we looked at his furnace, the
filter was old and clogged, his AC coil was clogged completly shut, he
had to remove the AC coil and wash it it was so bad. Its a good idea to
completely inspect the furnace and AC coils once in a while, Dirty
squirrel cage blower blades indicate by passing dust and dust inside the
furnace reducing its efficiency. Also filters that dont seal 100% to the
frame allow bypass, most are very poor in this area of performance.