SeaCat
Hey, my Halo is smoking
- Joined
- Sep 23, 2003
- Posts
- 15,378
Last summer my A/C blew up. (This is a packaged 2 ton unit with heat.) The Run Capacitor for the Compressor blew, causing a power surge through the entire system.
I fixed the A/C side of the system but disconnected the Heater side because there was a minor problem with it. The blower ran continously.
I finally decided to fix the heater side of the system, and proceded to start beating my head against the wall. I couldn't find the damned problem and it was driving me up the wall. Every test I was running on the system was coming up with odd results. Finally I got irritated and pulled the entire heater box out of the package unit and carried it to the patio where I could work on it out of the rain.
I pulled every component off the Firewall and tested them individualy. All of the switches were testing good. That left the coils, and even these were testing good. Right up to the minute I switched my Ohm Meter to it's most sensitive setting and tested from coil to coil. Hmmmmm, I was getting a reading and there wasn't supposed to be one. (Each coil is isolated by ceramic insulators.)
I started taking the coils apart and at first didn't notice anything. Then I noticed that the inner insulators for two terminals were discolored. When I looked closer they had hair line cracks in them and the discoloration was actually rust. When the system was energized the terminals and the rust would heat up causing a short between the two legs. This would bypass a switch which caused the blower to run.
Thankfully I was able to replace the insulators with some spares I had from when I replaced the coils last winter.
Now the funny thing is a friend of mine is an HVAC Tech. When I called him this morning and explained what I was dealing with he couldn't figure it out.
So now the system is up and running as it's supposed to. It cost me all of $0.00 to fix it.
Cat
I fixed the A/C side of the system but disconnected the Heater side because there was a minor problem with it. The blower ran continously.
I finally decided to fix the heater side of the system, and proceded to start beating my head against the wall. I couldn't find the damned problem and it was driving me up the wall. Every test I was running on the system was coming up with odd results. Finally I got irritated and pulled the entire heater box out of the package unit and carried it to the patio where I could work on it out of the rain.
I pulled every component off the Firewall and tested them individualy. All of the switches were testing good. That left the coils, and even these were testing good. Right up to the minute I switched my Ohm Meter to it's most sensitive setting and tested from coil to coil. Hmmmmm, I was getting a reading and there wasn't supposed to be one. (Each coil is isolated by ceramic insulators.)
I started taking the coils apart and at first didn't notice anything. Then I noticed that the inner insulators for two terminals were discolored. When I looked closer they had hair line cracks in them and the discoloration was actually rust. When the system was energized the terminals and the rust would heat up causing a short between the two legs. This would bypass a switch which caused the blower to run.
Thankfully I was able to replace the insulators with some spares I had from when I replaced the coils last winter.
Now the funny thing is a friend of mine is an HVAC Tech. When I called him this morning and explained what I was dealing with he couldn't figure it out.
So now the system is up and running as it's supposed to. It cost me all of $0.00 to fix it.
Cat
