|
Air Conditioning TroubleshootingAre you an equipment owner with a question about air conditioning troubleshooting? Our air conditioning problem page has some guidance that might help you get your air conditioner running. If you're working on a Trane unit, our page about troubleshooting Trane air conditioning controls has some tips about Trane's microprocessor controls that you might find useful. Are you a technician doing some air conditioning troubleshooting on a totally dead unit? Is it a nice hot summer day? Are your shoe soles already gummy from a previous service call on somebody's unit on a tar-paper roof? Did you just finish a service call 20 minutes ago where you were sweating buckets wriggling around in somebody's steam-kettle attic? If you're done with your diet soda; grab your tools, crank up the can-do attitude, and let's go troubleshoot this air conditioner. This unit's acting dead, so check the breaker, check the disconnect and fuses, and check to make sure you have correct power supplied to the unit. If the breaker is tripped and/or a fuse is blown, check the unit for grounds or shorts. If your air conditioning troubleshooting call is for a unit that has good supply voltage but is otherwise dead: If your supply power checks out ok, make sure the thermostat is turned on, that there is control power to it, and verify that it actually works. If there's control power to the thermostat and it works, make sure the wires to the evap fan relay and condensing unit aren't broken at the thermostat, or somewhere between the thermostat and the units. Air conditioning troubleshooting when the evaporator fan won't run. Check for power at the evap fan relay. Air conditioning troubleshooting when the air conditioning condenser won't run. Verify the cooling control signal from the thermostat. Check for refrigerant pressure. Check the safeties. If the oil safety switch has tripped, check the oil level. If the high pressure safety is open, check your pressures. Check the voltage monitor if there is one. If there is a delay timer, check accross the control terminals. If the safety contacts are closed, you should have control power at your contactor. If you have control power at the contactor coil but the contactor doesn't pull in, the contactor has failed. See our air conditioning contactor page for contactor troubleshooting tips. If you're on an air conditioning troubleshooting call where the contactor pulls in but the compressor doesn't run, check for open compressor windings, verify that the compressor terminal connections and contactor connections are tight, and verify that there is actually good voltage at the compressor when the contactor pulls in. If it's a single phase compressor, check the start relay and the capacitors. If the condenser fan doesn't run, check the relay, motor windings and capacitor, and fan blade, the same way as with the evaporator fan. Be thorough as you trace down wiring and look for failed components, and always follow safety precautions during your air conditioning troubleshooting jobs. By the time you reach this point of air conditioning troubleshooting, you will have found the failed component and repaired or replaced it, and the unit will be ready to run. Good Job! For a few more tips on condensing unit troubleshooting, and some unusual condensing unit problems I've run into, see our Troubleshoot Air Conditioning Condensing Unit page. Air conditioning troubleshooting on a unit that runs but doesn't seem to be cooling efficiently. Check the evaporator and condenser fans. Verify that the evaporator and condenser coils are clean and air flow is not blocked. Verify that the air filter is clean. Verify that the condenser is getting normal temperature outside air, and that another unit isn't blowing hot air into it. Verify that the evaporator supply and return ducting is not leaking; losing cold air or picking up warm outside air. At this point in this air conditioning troubleshooting job, attatch your gauges and check your pressures and temperatures. Before we get started though, in case you're interested, on our Air Conditioning Manifold Gauges page I discuss a couple of my favorite brands of manifold sets. With the unit off and pressures equalized, verify that the system contains the correct refrigerant. Run the unit and check operating pressures. When the space has cooled down and is about 5 degrees above design temperature, look for the following pressures and temperatures. Suction pressure should be in the range of 35 to 40 degrees below return air. Discharge pressure should be in the range of 20 to 35 degrees above ambient air. Superheat should be 20 to 30 degrees at the compressor. Subcooling should be 10 to 15 degrees at the outlet of the receiver or condenser. Air temperature rise through the condenser should be 20 to 30 degrees. Air temperature drop through the evaporator should be 15 to 20 degrees. If all of your operating characteristics fall within these ranges, the unit is running good. If you're interested in more air conditioning troubleshooting tips, you might want to take a look at our System Evaluation Manual. There are troubleshooting diagrams, and more detailed information about how to evaluate direct expansion and chilled water type air conditioning and refrigeration system operating characteristics. At this stage of air conditioning troubleshooting, if there is still a concern about the unit not cooling properly, you will need to do a capacity check. Measure the air flow in CFM through the evaporator. Measure the wet bulb temperatures of the air entering and leaving the evaporator. Using a psychrometric chart or an enthalpy conversion table, convert the wet bulb temperatures to enthalpy values, and calculate the difference between the two values. Multiply the difference in enthalpy values times 4.5, which is a constant used in this calculation, and then multiply that product times the CFM. This will tell you how many btu of heat the evaporator is absorbing from the air flowing through it. Yes, air conditioning troubleshooting often involves some mathematics. If the difference between design capacity and running capacity is minor, it can be adjusted by adjusting evaporator blower speed. If the unit is running at or near design capacity but still not handling the load of the space being cooled, the unit is simply too small. I hope this page has provided some useful tips about air conditioning troubleshooting, and please, feel free to contact us with any specific HVAC questions you might have, including questions about air conditioning on Guam, or refrigeration on Guam.
|
