HVAC Help...

Serious Business Backup 11 replies 297 views
se-alum's avatar
se-alum
Posts: 13,948
Jul 5, 2011 8:51pm
So I come home from work to an 88 degree house. I went back to the A/C unit, the blower fan is working, and the outside unit is working, but it isn't pulling any air over the evaporator coil. I don't know much about A/C units, but it sounds like maybe the capacitor went bad?? Any help would be appreciated.
THE4RINGZ's avatar
THE4RINGZ
Posts: 16,816
Jul 5, 2011 8:55pm
Most inexpensive attempt to fix is change the filters. Try that first, a clogged filter won't allow the air to pass over the cooling unit.

I once paid $178 in a service call to be told this very thing.
se-alum's avatar
se-alum
Posts: 13,948
Jul 5, 2011 8:57pm
THE4RINGZ;821986 wrote:Most inexpensive attempt to fix is change the filters. Try that first, a clogged filter won't allow the air to pass over the cooling unit.

I once paid $178 in a service call to be told this very thing.

I change the inside filter regularly, is there one on the outside unit??
THE4RINGZ's avatar
THE4RINGZ
Posts: 16,816
Jul 5, 2011 9:00pm
I don't know. Mine was the inside filter.
S
Scrawney
Posts: 93
Jul 5, 2011 10:19pm
Most likely not, could be the capacitor not allowing the fan to run, or possibly a relay not sending power to the fan.
ernest_t_bass's avatar
ernest_t_bass
Posts: 24,984
Jul 5, 2011 11:07pm
Freon?
THE4RINGZ's avatar
THE4RINGZ
Posts: 16,816
Jul 5, 2011 11:16pm
ernest_t_bass;822113 wrote:Freon?
pretty sure the dude doesn't live in his car, but dynamite drop in.
ernest_t_bass's avatar
ernest_t_bass
Posts: 24,984
Jul 5, 2011 11:51pm
THE4RINGZ;822117 wrote:pretty sure the dude doesn't live in his car, but dynamite drop in.

My brother in law owns an HVAC business and just "charged" my AC unit with three pounds of freon.
se-alum's avatar
se-alum
Posts: 13,948
Jul 6, 2011 8:03am
ernest_t_bass;822113 wrote:Freon?
If everything else was working, that may have been it, but no air is being pulled over the evaporator coil, so I don't think that's it.
C
Cairo.
Posts: 6
Jul 6, 2011 9:07am
If you're calling for the unit to run and you walk outside next to it -- Is the fan spinning or do you hear a humming sound? If not, it is most likely a compressor issue where it has short-cycled and tripped. If the unit is running, but you're getting no cold air, 2 possible reasons -- 1st and most likely would be a bad evaporator coil (whether that is due to a leak, trip, or no refrigerant). 2nd, you may have dirty filters where the airflow is impeded. Unfortnunately A/C units can be tricky to work on especially if there is fluid involved. Regardless of the problem, your best guess is to get a service guy out there to diagnose it. It will cost you $150 just to have him come out and look at it, but without much knowledge of the unit trying to fix it yourself may be much more costly.
se-alum's avatar
se-alum
Posts: 13,948
Jul 6, 2011 9:30am
Cairo.;822262 wrote:If you're calling for the unit to run and you walk outside next to it -- Is the fan spinning or do you hear a humming sound? If not, it is most likely a compressor issue where it has short-cycled and tripped. If the unit is running, but you're getting no cold air, 2 possible reasons -- 1st and most likely would be a bad evaporator coil (whether that is due to a leak, trip, or no refrigerant). 2nd, you may have dirty filters where the airflow is impeded. Unfortnunately A/C units can be tricky to work on especially if there is fluid involved. Regardless of the problem, your best guess is to get a service guy out there to diagnose it. It will cost you $150 just to have him come out and look at it, but without much knowledge of the unit trying to fix it yourself may be much more costly.
Well, I rent off my sister & brother-in-law, so it won't cost me anything...lol! I just wanted to see if there was a quick, easy fix. Looks like I will just have to have them take care of it.
password's avatar
password
Posts: 2,360
Jul 6, 2011 11:29am
You can change the Run Capacitor on the blower for less than $20.00 and it takes about 10 minutes, make sure you turn off the power to the furnace. Take it to an appliance shop and they will test it for you if you don't have a tester, if it test good then you are looking at a blower motor with a cost of about $120.00 if you do it yourself.