unix-freak wrote:
"Travis Jordan" wrote in message
om...
Travis Jordan wrote:
unix-freak wrote:
"Travis Jordan" wrote in message
...
unix-freak wrote:
OK.... I checked the run capacitor and it measured 35uF; well
within 10% tolerance. My AC guy called me back and came by and
found that the system was 2 lbs low on freon. After charging it,
it's run fine since 5:30 and the compressor has NOT cut off. It
was 84 in the house and 5 hours later is down to 78. When he was
here he measured the return air at 81 and the supply at 68 at the
registers. Tomorrow when I go to work I'll just cut it down to 76
and see if the house is cool when I get home.

The 13 degree drop across the air handler is low - as I said
earlier it should be 17 - 22. What did he say about the root
cause of that part of the problem?

He said 13 degrees was good.

How did he know you were two pounds low? What method did he use
to charge the system?

R-22 / guages.

If you are / were low on refrigerant (Freon is a trademark for one
manufacturer's blend of R-22) then you need to find out where it
is leaking. Did the tech do a leak test?

Not sure.

My guess is that your system will run for a while and then you'll
be back in the same inadequate cooling situation. So then what?

I don't know. It's conceivable that the first guy leaked a bunch of
R-22 out when he was disconnecting his guages.

Not 2 lbs worth! That is a LOT of R-22 in vapor form.

A competent tech would never add R-22 without also looking for a
leak. In a closed system refrigerant doesn't get "used up". I'd
call the contractor back and ask them whether they did a leak test,
and if not, why not.

Forgot to include this on charging methods - gauges alone won't do
it. http://wwwebworks.com/ht/fyi/Jim_Wheeler_Charging.htm

The whole thing is pretty discouraging. I've spent 170.00 between 2
techs and am right back where I started. The first guy I paid 75.00
for what...to leak out a bunch of r-22? The second guy at least got it
charged back up. I just need to find someone that will come out and
look at things from an engineering aspect and really assess what's
going on. IMO, if an AC system has a 13 degree differential across the
evaporatorm then the tech should know where to look, not just leave
and collect his 92.00, saying that 13 degrees is good.

Assuming that the charge is good, and there's only a 13 degree
difference across the coil, maybe it just needs cleaning. I would
think that if it were dirty on the bottom, that it would be freezing
up.

I think Steve Bukosky's advice is pretty good - another option is to
call the local Trane distributor and ask them who THEY would have work
on their home system.

Steve Bukosky wrote:

Trying to diagnose a problem like this on the Internet is not the
solution because of so many variables and lack of details. The best
way I can help you is to direct you to competant service. Just
mentioning that you have a Trane unit, I suggest that you visit their
website to locate a Comfort Specialist dealer. Go to www.trane.com
and under the residential section, look for the dealer locator. You
will come up with a list of dealers and some of them should be labeled
as a Comfort Specialist dealer. I suggest you call those. If you
have several to choose from, you might ask each if they have any NATE
certified technicians. Not necessary but is a sign they might be
better technically.

If you don't use a Trane dealer, check the sites of other brands on
the internet to locate their premier dealers. You will pay more money
for a good dealer but doing air conditioning correctly will cost
less in the long run.

If you don't use a Trane dealer, check the sites of other brands on
the internet to locate their premier dealers. You will pay more money
for a good dealer but doing air conditioning correctly will cost
less in the long run.