AC unit help

Terryl

Terryl

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OK Kid's, I have a York AC unit (split unit) that will not start, the fan and condenser motor do nothing, I checked all fuses and breakers, and tested the contactor, all look to be working fine as I get 220 VAC to the unit, 110 on all sides of the contactor. (US AC voltages)

So thinking it may be a bad dual capacitor (cheapest part in the unit) I replaced it, (same type and rating) and nothing.....I hear the contactor drop in when I turn the thermostat to cool, but nothing happens, no fan, no condenser motor...ZIP.

Anyone have any ideas???? I hate to have to go with a service guy and find out I need a new AC unit, and have to pay for a service call... not in this years budget......Or not even the next ten years budget.

And it's going to be 101 degrees F here by Sunday....

HELP.......Terryl
 
Is there a reset switch somewhere on the unit? If that's tripped then it could cause the issues you're having, other than that, I can't suggest anything as air-con is a rarity over here in blighty.... :)
 
Post a couple of pictures of the unit (opened).
 
I will see what I can do about some photos, and will look for a reset on the compressor motor, but if it was tripped why would the fan motor not run, it's on a separate circuit.
 
Terryl said:
OK Kid's, I have a York AC unit (split unit) that will not start, the fan and condenser motor do nothing, I checked all fuses and breakers, and tested the contactor, all look to be working fine as I get 220 VAC to the unit, 110 on all sides of the contactor. (US AC voltages)

So thinking it may be a bad dual capacitor (cheapest part in the unit) I replaced it, (same type and rating) and nothing.....I hear the contactor drop in when I turn the thermostat to cool, but nothing happens, no fan, no condenser motor...ZIP.

Anyone have any ideas???? I hate to have to go with a service guy and find out I need a new AC unit, and have to pay for a service call... not in this years budget......Or not even the next ten years budget.

And it's going to be 101 degrees F here by Sunday....

HELP.......Terryl
Click to expand...
Try bypassing the thermostat and on some units in the UK if the refrigerant is below the required pressure they will not work. So could also be the refrigerant pressure switch.
 
When was the last time it was working? When it last worked did it deliver a good blast of cold air or was it just cool?
 
The unit last ran fine back in October, (stays hot around here) and it was just as cold on the output as when it was new.

The thermostat has been tested, it is sending the correct control voltages to the main inside unit, and that unit's control board is closing the contactor at the outside compressor, I see it close when the thermostat is set to cool.

And the compressor unit is a tottaly sealed unit, nothing to access or reset, I would have to get an AC service company out to test the pressure, that would run into $150 US, not in the budget right now, I will have sweat it out.

Setting up for a wire by wire circuit trace to see if the field mice have chewed into something outside, the fan and compressor are on two separate circuits, the fan should run if the compressor motor does not start, having problems reading the circuit diagram as it has faded out over the years.

If anyone can find one on-line the unit is a York and the model # is H2RA036S06E, it is a 220 volt (US voltage) single phase unit.
 
Maybe this.
.manualslib.com/manual/925292/York-Pcg4-Series.html?page=21
 
Well that was close, but I found the problem, the contactor had one bad point on it, this thing is in a very tight place and was hard to see the burnt out contact, it was found during a point to point wiring check.

I tested the unit while the AC was hot, (don't try this at home kids unless you know what your doing) I found AC voltage on all points of the contactor main connections with the contactor de-energized, this didn't sound right till I looked at the circuits, the dual cap was supplying enough voltage for a false reading.

With the AC disconnected and all caps shorted out a continuity check was done, that is when I found the burnt contact, it was the one that was very hard to see as it was the one against the wall of the control case.


Using a contactor I had for a 3 phase saw I by-passed the one inside the AC unit an it works fine, too bad the contactor I have on hand wont fit inside the case, oh well another trip to town.


Thanks to all for the help.

Terrly
 
Sounds like it's not going to punch a hole through your pocket to repair Terryl. Good investigative procedure.
 
Wish I had some air conditioning right now, almost 3am and it's 25°C in my bedroom, too warm to comfortably sleep, assuming I could actually get to sleep....... :blink:
 
PaulR said:
Sounds like it's not going to punch a hole through your pocket to repair Terryl. Good investigative procedure.
Click to expand...
14 bucks for the cap and 21 for the contactor, it works just like new, I guess the cap went first and took out the contactor as the current load is around 22 amps per side with the compressor on, contactor is rated at 30 amps per side.

And 2cvbloke, 25 C is comfy weather around here, it will be 38 C here by Sunday, heading out to play on the lake, time for some Bikini watching.
 
Just returned from the Arava desert where most days it was 42-43C and 3% humidity now in the Negev desert where it is cooler 34C however humidity is a lot higher 36%, glad you traced the fault and repaired it successfully, life in such high temperatures can be unbearable
 
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Terryl said:
And 2cvbloke, 25 C is comfy weather around here
Click to expand...

Here in the cold climate UK, 25°C is pretty toasty, seeing as we live in colder temperatures more often than warm... :wacko:
 
2cvbloke said:
Here in the cold climate UK, 25°C is pretty toasty, seeing as we live in colder temperatures more often than warm... :wacko:
Click to expand...
25c is unbearable, i wouldn't be able to sleep in that.
My bedroom once hit 31c and I had to go out and buy a portable AC unit, I cut a bit of card out to the shape of the window and put the pipe through it, I regretted using sellotape as when the summer was over I could not remove the residue no matter what I tried! In fact the portable AC unit only made 3-5c difference and cost a fortune to run.
 
RustySpoons said:
25c is unbearable, i wouldn't be able to sleep in that.
Click to expand...

I had to have my fan blowing over me as I slept, it's still 24°C in my bedroom as it is, but at least I got some sleep eventually...
 
2cvbloke said:
I had to have my fan blowing over me as I slept, it's still 24°C in my bedroom as it is, but at least I got some sleep eventually...
Click to expand...
I've got a Honeywell Tower Fan thing with a remote, it has a timer on it so I set it to go off in a couple of hours, I could not do without it in the summer.
 
I just have a cheap desk fan I got from Currys years back sat across the room from my bed, keeps the air stirred up nicely to reduce the hotspots, but handy to have when it's just too hot to sleep properly...
 
The only thing bad about the hot weather around here is the big jump in the eletric bill, a normal 45 to 55 a month* during the cool time jumps to 125 to 160 a month when it gets hot, (depends on how hot I get) and I'm on the senior/low income discount plan.

*In USD...... And they don't take green stamps.
 
RustySpoons said:
25c is unbearable, i wouldn't be able to sleep in that.
My bedroom once hit 31c and I had to go out and buy a portable AC unit, I cut a bit of card out to the shape of the window and put the pipe through it, I regretted using sellotape as when the summer was over I could not remove the residue no matter what I tried! In fact the portable AC unit only made 3-5c difference and cost a fortune to run.
Click to expand...
If the sellotape residue is still there, try something like a hairdyer/paint stripping gun (gently now!) and then some cellulose thinners - that'll get rid of almost anything like that stuff!
PS: And, as I said in "mid-Winter", get some better wall insulation - keeps the house warmer in Winter, and cooler in Summer!
 
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