Strange A/C Problem??
 

I have an 8 yr old house and A/C system. That is my current problem, since
I will be leaving for an extended vacation soon, and am very concerned that
the A/C could shut down while we are away form southern Florida.

About a month ago, we came home one day and it was 80 degrees in house, so I
knew A/C had a problem. Furnace was running, but compressor was not.
Called A/C service and they said to shut off furnace. When tech got there
next day, and turned on furnace, compressor went on OK. They checked every
thing out and it all seemed to be OK. Since it was all running, there was
nothing else to do.

Had A/C service with annual tune-up, and tech said all was OK last
Wednesday. Today, just got home, and it was 79 degrees in house. Furnace
was on, but compressor was not. I shut down furnace for an hour and turned
it on. This time compressor was on. I will call A/C service company to
check out system, but I am concerned that they if system still working,
there is nothing for them to do.

Anyone have a similar problem with a problem such as this? Any
suggestions??

Strange A/C Problem??
 

Les wrote:

I have an 8 yr old house and A/C system. That is my current problem, since
I will be leaving for an extended vacation soon, and am very concerned that
the A/C could shut down while we are away form southern Florida.

About a month ago, we came home one day and it was 80 degrees in house, so I
knew A/C had a problem. Furnace was running, but compressor was not.
Called A/C service and they said to shut off furnace. When tech got there
next day, and turned on furnace, compressor went on OK. They checked every
thing out and it all seemed to be OK. Since it was all running, there was
nothing else to do.

Had A/C service with annual tune-up, and tech said all was OK last
Wednesday. Today, just got home, and it was 79 degrees in house. Furnace
was on, but compressor was not. I shut down furnace for an hour and turned
it on. This time compressor was on. I will call A/C service company to
check out system, but I am concerned that they if system still working,
there is nothing for them to do.

Anyone have a similar problem with a problem such as this? Any
suggestions??


There are lots of possibilities. Here are some to start the list:

Battery operated thermostat with weak batteries

Weak motor relay or starting capacitor on compressor

Failing/overheating compressor

You (or someone you hire) will need to methodically eliminate
these and other possibilities.

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Strange A/C Problem??
 

Thanks for the reply.

I have thermostat with battery backup, but have not seen any low battery
messages. Furthermore I changed batteries each year June 1, so that cannot
be the problem.

Regarding the other 2 suggestions to check out, can a tech determine if they
are a problem if the compressor is currently working? If not, should I just
wait for house to heat up again, see that the air handler is working and
compressor is not working, and then wait for a service tech?

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Have a great day, except you spammers
To email, remove the obvious

.......
"CJT" wrote in message
...
Les wrote:

I have an 8 yr old house and A/C system. That is my current problem,
since
I will be leaving for an extended vacation soon, and am very concerned
that
the A/C could shut down while we are away form southern Florida.

About a month ago, we came home one day and it was 80 degrees in house,
so I
knew A/C had a problem. Furnace was running, but compressor was not.
Called A/C service and they said to shut off furnace. When tech got
there
next day, and turned on furnace, compressor went on OK. They checked
every
thing out and it all seemed to be OK. Since it was all running, there
was
nothing else to do.

Had A/C service with annual tune-up, and tech said all was OK last
Wednesday. Today, just got home, and it was 79 degrees in house.
Furnace
was on, but compressor was not. I shut down furnace for an hour and
turned
it on. This time compressor was on. I will call A/C service company to
check out system, but I am concerned that they if system still working,
there is nothing for them to do.

Anyone have a similar problem with a problem such as this? Any
suggestions??


There are lots of possibilities. Here are some to start the list:

Battery operated thermostat with weak batteries

Weak motor relay or starting capacitor on compressor

Failing/overheating compressor

You (or someone you hire) will need to methodically eliminate
these and other possibilities.

--
The e-mail address in our reply-to line is reversed in an attempt to
minimize spam. Our true address is of the form .

Strange A/C Problem??
 

Les wrote:
Thanks for the reply.

I have thermostat with battery backup, but have not seen any low battery
messages. Furthermore I changed batteries each year June 1, so that cannot
be the problem.

Regarding the other 2 suggestions to check out, can a tech determine if they
are a problem if the compressor is currently working? If not, should I just
wait for house to heat up again, see that the air handler is working and
compressor is not working, and then wait for a service tech?


Generally if the blower in the furnace comes on when calling for
cooling, the thermostat is good. It sounds like your problem is at the
condenser unit.

I think you are going to have to diagnose the problem while it is
failing. The first thing I would do is measure the contactor coil to
see if it was being activated. If it is, then see if the 220 v A/C is
being applied to the condenser unit (Compressor and fan). If you do not
feel comfortable with electricity, get someone who does. You can get
hurt if you do not know what you are doing.

Strange A/C Problem??
 

I'm curious as to why you bother leaving the A/C on if you are going to
be away from home for several days. Seems like a waste of electricity
to me.

Strange A/C Problem??
 

Les writes:

Anyone have a similar problem with a problem such as this? Any
suggestions??

Another possible diagnosis: condenser fan motor has sticky bearings,
doesn't start reliably, unit overheats and shuts down.

Strange A/C Problem??
 

wrote in message
oups.com...
I'm curious as to why you bother leaving the A/C on if you are going to
be away from home for several days. Seems like a waste of electricity
to me.

Here in Florida and other humid areas it is a good idea to leave the A/C on.
But the setting can be something on the order of 80*, just to keep the
humidity down in the home. Otherwise mildew will be a worse problem than
the small amount $ spent to keep the A/C running.

Strange A/C Problem??
 

Les wrote:

Thanks for the reply.

I have thermostat with battery backup, but have not seen any low battery
messages. Furthermore I changed batteries each year June 1, so that cannot
be the problem.

Regarding the other 2 suggestions to check out, can a tech determine if they
are a problem if the compressor is currently working? If not, should I just
wait for house to heat up again, see that the air handler is working and
compressor is not working, and then wait for a service tech?

I think a typical tech presented with a device that appears to be
working, but which is known to experience intermittent failures,
will just start replacing the likely components. That might work,
or it might just be an expensive waste of time.

You might be better off waiting for it to fail, and exercising your
own best powers of observation (e.g. is anything buzzing? smelling
like it's burning? is there anything unusual on the thermostat's
status display? etc.)

--
The e-mail address in our reply-to line is reversed in an attempt to
minimize spam. Our true address is of the form .

Strange A/C Problem??
 

Bishoop wrote:
wrote in message
oups.com...
I'm curious as to why you bother leaving the A/C on if you are going to
be away from home for several days. Seems like a waste of electricity
to me.

Here in Florida and other humid areas it is a good idea to leave the A/C on.
But the setting can be something on the order of 80*, just to keep the
humidity down in the home. Otherwise mildew will be a worse problem than
the small amount $ spent to keep the A/C running.

I live in a humid area (Baltimore) and would be OK leaving my AC off
all summer if my house were unoccupied. Having said that, the OP's
real problem is that they do not want to leave on an unreliable A/C
unit when they are away on vacation. In this situation I'd probably
just get a dehumidifier and use it and leave the A/C off. Assuming
that they could find a way to get it to drain into a drain, it should
be OK.

Strange A/C Problem??
 

Les wrote:

Any suggestions??

Yes, evacuate the house immediately and call the God Squad. Have them
exorcise your house with distilled holy water (no staining).