Anyone working in Hvac
- Thread starter dragonballs
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Pescador Paul
I've posted enough I should edit this section
- Jun 11, 2004
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I have sold HVAC for about nine years in SoCal. While I am not a tech or an installer, I would be happy to answer any questions you might have.
Paul
Paul
I am in Florida till Thursday when I get home I will find out the situation. The entire unit was iced up and making noise according to the neighbors that are taking care of the house.
Well it most likely is repairable Vance as the Compressor is not shot if it is icing. Sounds like an outdoor fan or possibly a charge or a control problem. I have a guy at Mckinstry that I trust that I could hook you up with. Will be going rate but they will shoot you straight. Give me a call if interested.
Also have the neighbors pull the disconnect at the outdoor unit to kill the compressor so it doesn’t burn up. You most likely have back up electric strip heat that can be activated at thermostat or will come on automatically when heat pump does not keep up.
Also have the neighbors pull the disconnect at the outdoor unit to kill the compressor so it doesn’t burn up. You most likely have back up electric strip heat that can be activated at thermostat or will come on automatically when heat pump does not keep up.
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Cozy Heating in Arlington is reputable and close to you. I've used them before on a new air-source unit.
Cozy Heating – Reliable HVAC Professionals (cozyheatinginc.com)
Cozy Heating – Reliable HVAC Professionals (cozyheatinginc.com)
I gave cozy a shot at the maintenance contract at our office building for work and I would not recommend them to anybody. Missed appts., poor customer relations, and poor work overall.
I noticed my heat pump doing something similar today, from the bottom-up on the outside, not on the coils.
When a heat pump has low refrigerant they tend to ice up.... Too much refrigerant and they won’t get cold or even blow warm air.... The refrigerant must have the correct amount
If it is low..... why? It’s enclosed... leaky coils, pin hole in line from vibration, bad schrader valve? If it is 15 years or older probably time to replace it. You will replace entire system indoor/outdoor, the old coils are R-22 and not compatible with newer.
The ice will typically start around the copper refrigerant lines and grow.... running them low on refrigerant can burn up the compressor. As said above pull disconnect or shut off in the panel and then use Aux heat/Emergency heat...
If it is low..... why? It’s enclosed... leaky coils, pin hole in line from vibration, bad schrader valve? If it is 15 years or older probably time to replace it. You will replace entire system indoor/outdoor, the old coils are R-22 and not compatible with newer.
The ice will typically start around the copper refrigerant lines and grow.... running them low on refrigerant can burn up the compressor. As said above pull disconnect or shut off in the panel and then use Aux heat/Emergency heat...
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If it is icing up check the following....
1) Filter. Dirty filter reduces the air across the evap coil and can cause the coil to freeze.
2) Refrigerant. Low charge will cause temps to drop too low and cause freezing on compressor and lineset.
3) Bad indoor blower motor or motor run cap. Again no air across evap coil will cause freezing.
as a lesson for others.... I see this photo and I see a lot of moss residue on your unit... People get a HVAC system and then they neglect and ignore it. This will result in premature failure.
Think of the condensing coil similar to the radiator in your truck/car..... Now neglect that radiator let is get full of dirt, debris, and generally get clogged up..... And now head up the grape vine or any other pass.... You’re going to overheat and choke your engine..
The compressor flows refrigerant through this and the fan draws air through the “radiator”.......
Now... inadequate airflow and low refrigerant.... deterioration due to neglect... viola!
you should be able to get a cheap diagnostic many companies run “no heat” special so they can diagnose a bad unit and sell you a new one... Don’t spend a lot of money on an old unit!
Bite it off and plan on replacing it if it is 15 years or older....Depending on size and efficiency you’re looking at some coin.... divide it over 15-20 years and your HVAC system isn’t that expensive, but it’s gonna hurt!
Most likely low on refrigerant and airflow issues as explained by G-spot. It could also be expansion valve problems, but the first two are the most likely to check first. If you don't know how to deal with it, hire an experienced HVAC repairman.
Vance outdoor fan or defrost control sensor or control board is likely with a even frost pattern like that. Associated noise may have been dying fan and hopefully not the compressor liquid slugging. Peddler that looks to be low on charge.
It (the gunk) looks worse in the photo than in-person, but point taken. The inside of the unit, and the coils are pretty clean.
This unit, and the electric air handler are a little more than 12 years-old.
Wasn’t trying to call you out, was saying everybody does it....
You’re on the edge of replacement based on age... hopefully they can add a little refrigerant and fire it off and live another number of years.... Might pay them to clean the outdoor unit. They have a safe chemical they can spray on it.... let it soak and rinse stuff off....
If they find it is significantly low then there is a leak somewhere. My main word of caution would be...... Don’t spend too much on diagnosis and repair.... you could drop $3-$4 K on a new compressor and end up with leaky coils in a year....
Noise was probably you compressor thumping or the fan bad bearing or hitting ice.... I’ve seen fan blades loaded up with fir needles too, just sticky enough to stay put..
They do it for different reasons...You’ll probably need a service tech to diagnose yours for sure. Find a local company that has a “no heat” special. Lot of companies offer a cheap $99.00 diagnosis hoping for more work out of the service call.
I am a hvac service Tech and Wild Bill gave you sound advice. I suspect it it defrost control board or one of the sensors. It is not going into defrost or the reversing valve is not shifting into defrost. If the outdoor fan was bad it will ice up quickly but the defrost board will send it into defrost, it will defrost and start the cycle all over again. It will however cost you a lot of energy to operate it like that. The noise is the outdoor fan blade striking ice build up and possibly destroying it. Turn off disconnect or turn system switch on thermostat to emergency heat to prevent compressor operation until you can have a service tech diagnose root problem.
If you caught it early enough it should not of cost you too much. I don’t live in your area, to be able to assist you. Good luck.
Peddler,
make sure all the drain holes at the bottom of your heat pump are clear. I would look at the freeze pattern after a defrost cycle. It should be even on all circuits. There are generally 2-4 circuits on the outdoor coil. Each coil should look the same. It looks like your unit is going into defrost but the condensate is not leaving the outdoor coil area (water pooling up) When unit comes out of defrost the lower coil refreezes water. It is very tough to diagnose the root cause without putting the unit through it’s different sequences of operation. Check the basics like clean coils, clean filters, clean condensate pans and verify there are no excessive vibrations and tight electrical connections. These are things most guys can do with basic hand tools and knowledge to make their systems live a long trouble free life of service. Outside of that you need to find a reliable and trusted service tech.
G-spot is correct, if your unit is 15-20 years old it is time to start budgeting for a new unit.The old reliable refrigerant R-22 is not being made any more and the cost of it continues to rise as it is depleted world wide. HVAC systems are engineered around the refrigerant. It is not a good idea to retrofit a system engineered tor one refrigerant to another except as a last case senereo. Other than the refrigerant, almost all other parts are available to repair a unit including coils. If your unit is 15-20 years old and you have a major repair like replacing a coil or a compressor you will be money ahead to replace the unit. The new unit will have an up to date refrigerant and higher efficiency ratings but generally it requires new outdoor, and indoor unit as well as new line set. The ductwork can be reused.
If you caught it early enough it should not of cost you too much. I don’t live in your area, to be able to assist you. Good luck.
Peddler,
make sure all the drain holes at the bottom of your heat pump are clear. I would look at the freeze pattern after a defrost cycle. It should be even on all circuits. There are generally 2-4 circuits on the outdoor coil. Each coil should look the same. It looks like your unit is going into defrost but the condensate is not leaving the outdoor coil area (water pooling up) When unit comes out of defrost the lower coil refreezes water. It is very tough to diagnose the root cause without putting the unit through it’s different sequences of operation. Check the basics like clean coils, clean filters, clean condensate pans and verify there are no excessive vibrations and tight electrical connections. These are things most guys can do with basic hand tools and knowledge to make their systems live a long trouble free life of service. Outside of that you need to find a reliable and trusted service tech.
G-spot is correct, if your unit is 15-20 years old it is time to start budgeting for a new unit.The old reliable refrigerant R-22 is not being made any more and the cost of it continues to rise as it is depleted world wide. HVAC systems are engineered around the refrigerant. It is not a good idea to retrofit a system engineered tor one refrigerant to another except as a last case senereo. Other than the refrigerant, almost all other parts are available to repair a unit including coils. If your unit is 15-20 years old and you have a major repair like replacing a coil or a compressor you will be money ahead to replace the unit. The new unit will have an up to date refrigerant and higher efficiency ratings but generally it requires new outdoor, and indoor unit as well as new line set. The ductwork can be reused.
I noticed this morning that my heat pump fan is kicking on. It’s still heating the house, but maybe not as well?
turn it off and use auxiliary heat only! If it is low on refrigerant and you continue to run compressor it will burn it up... your unit is 12 years old.... right on the edge of replacement... If you are able to add a little refrigerant you may get many more years out of it.... If the compressor is operating with low refrigerant and it burns it and fills it with acid you will ruin it for sure.. Your system is also the newer R410-A, so it is much cheaper to buy!
since you have a tech scheduled already, better safe than sorry....
