Home air conditioner.

[Beachbummer]

Everyone will make a lemon every now and then. Ask the affected victim of a lemon and they will (rightly) tell you the brand sucks and they make total cr@p.

I like parts availability and popularity so in 15 years when something fails any parts house/tech will have what you need in stock.

Best of luck on your search.

 

[drewkaree]

vouchsafed

So...Word-Of-The-Day toilet paper was all that was left when you went pandemic shopping?

 

[Robconn]

Conversely, had water dripping from heat/ac vent on ceiling. What was puzzling was that there were no immediate plumbing anywhere near this vent. I checked the roofing in the area no leak.
Want to guess?
No, it was not a miracle like the Virgin Mary weeping. I determined the vent was by code enforcement the minimal acceptable distance from an exterior wall. The temperature outside was the coldest I’ve ever experienced for GA. So running the heat along with a metal register formed condensation. The issue has not returned nor has the temperature dropped that low outside since.

 

[Neutron]

Conversely, had water dripping from heat/ac vent on ceiling. What was puzzling was that there were no immediate plumbing anywhere near this vent. I checked the roofing in the area no leak.
Want to guess?
No, it was not a miracle like the Virgin Mary weeping. I determined the vent was by code enforcement the minimal acceptable distance from an exterior wall. The temperature outside was the coldest I’ve ever experienced for GA. So running the heat along with a metal register formed condensation. The issue has not returned nor has the temperature dropped that low outside since.

Is the air handler in attic?
Emergency drip pan leaking or no water level shut off

 

[tabbibus]

Haven't read the responses. But avoid Lennox at all cost. The house I just moved into has top of the line relatively new Lennox and it has been shite

 

[AZMark]

Seems like there’s a couple bots on this page?

 

[Robconn]

Is the air handler in attic?
Emergency drip pan leaking or no water level shut off

I have a gas furnace in attic. I do not have a humidifier on system. I hadn’t considered drip pan or water shut off. The duct that follows rafters is the one moisture was an issue. it’s a Westinghouse brand. Parts are hard to come by. but have been lucky universal parts are available. They are 18 years old.

 

[Neutron]

I have a gas furnace in attic. I do not have a humidifier on system. I hadn’t considered drip pan or water shut off. The duct that follows rafters is the one moisture was an issue. it’s a Westinghouse brand. Parts are hard to come by. but have been lucky universal parts are available. They are 18 years old.

Reason why i suggested that, was sitting on the throne a few months back and got a drip of water on my knee. Turned into a steady drip.
Went in the attic where the air handler is which is right above my master(can i still say that) bath
The condensation pipe was clogged and it was going into the drip pan. Turns out the pan has its corners sealed with clear crappy silicone. It was running down a plywood seem and made its way to the register above my toilet.
Easy fix and no wet sheet rock. Sealed the pan with Toyota black rtv(love that stuff)
All good now

 

[Robconn]

Reason why i suggested that, was sitting on the throne a few months back and got a drip of water on my knee. Turned into a steady drip.
Went in the attic where the air handler is which is right above my master(can i still say that) bath
The condensation pipe was clogged and it was going into the drip pan. Turns out the pan has its corners sealed with clear crappy silicone. It was running down a plywood seem and made its way to the register above my toilet.
Easy fix and no wet sheet rock. Sealed the pan with Toyota black rtv(love that stuff)
All good now

Yes water will defy gravity and hard to track. I will shore up pan to be safe. Thanks for your suggestion.

 

[Neutron]

My a/c quit the other day, it was on but i knew something was wrong, checked the handler and it said the supply temp on the controller board said only 74 degrees and normally its in the mid 60s.
Turns out the condenser fan was not on but trying to. If i gave it a push with a screwdriver it would stay spinning till it cycled off.
Called my a/c guy told him what was going on he said it was just a capacitor. Came the next day and yup he was right. Just a capacitor
Total cost of the repair 120 bucks. What a relief.
He checked the rest of the system out said it was perfect. When it goes i will definitely buy another Trane system. Its currently a XR15 and works great for my small 2000 square foot house with 15 feet ceilings is 70% of the first floor

 

[Robconn]

My a/c quit the other day, it was on but i knew something was wrong, checked the handler and it said the supply temp on the controller board said only 74 degrees and normally its in the mid 60s.
Turns out the condenser fan was not on but trying to. If i gave it a push with a screwdriver it would stay spinning till it cycled off.
Called my a/c guy told him what was going on he said it was just a capacitor. Came the next day and yup he was right. Just a capacitor
Total cost of the repair 120 bucks. What a relief.
He checked the rest of the system out said it was perfect. When it goes i will definitely buy another Trane system. Its currently a XR15 and works great for my small 2000 square foot house with 15 feet ceilings is 70% of the first floor

I’m glad that all that was. My neighbor has one of those insurance plans. So after paying deductible which does not apply to repair cost he would paying more and response times he said were longer. I gave him the name of who I use. They were there that night. He said it cost cheaper than if he would go through his plan. I’m sure they are times the plan is ideal. Since my units are old I’m planning on installing 2 new units. Probably 12k and up for two units combined. Hot water heater as well. Glad I have my boat, won’t be traveling on vacation with cost of these necessary repairs.

 

[Neutron]

I’m glad that all that was. My neighbor has one of those insurance plans. So after paying deductible which does not apply to repair cost he would paying more and response times he said were longer. I gave him the name of who I use. They were there that night. He said it cost cheaper than if he would go through his plan. I’m sure they are times the plan is ideal. Since my units are old I’m planning on installing 2 new units. Probably 12k and up for two units combined. Hot water heater as well. Glad I have my boat, won’t be traveling on vacation with cost of these necessary repairs.

I am very lucky to have great friends in all sort of trades. We do a lot of horse trading at times but we all treat each other more that fair when we have to pay for repairs.

I find most of those warranty plans are not worth the money at all.
most stuff i can repair myself and i could have fixed this capacitor myself but figured let him check the system and pressures to make sure we are good to go.

thats why we moved here to coastal NC. Any time off is a vacation to me. After 40 plus years of New England and winters, our new home is a vacation, lol

 

[BigN8]

All I can say is I hope I get 23 years out of mine!

 

[Inthrustwetrust]

My a/c quit the other day, it was on but i knew something was wrong, checked the handler and it said the supply temp on the controller board said only 74 degrees and normally its in the mid 60s.
Turns out the condenser fan was not on but trying to. If i gave it a push with a screwdriver it would stay spinning till it cycled off.
Called my a/c guy told him what was going on he said it was just a capacitor. Came the next day and yup he was right. Just a capacitor
Total cost of the repair 120 bucks. What a relief.
He checked the rest of the system out said it was perfect. When it goes i will definitely buy another Trane system. Its currently a XR15 and works great for my small 2000 square foot house with 15 feet ceilings is 70% of the first floor

Lucky. I bought my house a couple years ago, still had the original unit from the house was built in 2001, so we knew it was on its last legs. 6 days suffering through the Florida heat and $7400 later we now have a new Trane XR15. Happy with it so far.

 

[Toddanddaneen]

I’ve been in the hvac business for awhile. Im going to say that it isn’t necessarily the brand equipment you buy but the company you have install the equipment. I’ve installed pretty much every brand out there. I will say Lennox and Daikin are both pretty decent build quality as long as you are getting Daikin equipment and not the restickered Goodman equipment that is out there now which is likely what they will be selling you. Commercial Daikin equipment is good stuff. I wrote trane off several years ago their furnaces and air handlers now look and feel like a Goodman and flex and bend when installing, very cheaply built. If it were me I would be looking at Lennox as long as they are in line price wise with the other options. Usually you can step to 14 seer for minimal money which is worth it anything above that you will be lucky to get your money back out of before it will be need replaced again. Being in the business I ended up going geothermal at my house. I have about what most people pay for a standard system in their house but I have no labor costs associated with it. Stick with a company that is going to do a manual j calculation (load calculation) and has a good reputation locally and you should be fine with any manufacturer. If they don’t know what a manual j is or say it doesn’t need done I would run.

 

[Toddanddaneen]

Also most likely you have an insulation or air leak issue with the vent that was dripping water. Cold air against a warm surface will create condensation. I would pull the cover for the register and make sure it’s sealed around the edges where it comes through the drywall and go in the attic and make sure it’s insulated correctly. Looks insulated fine from the pictures but air still moves through insulation so I would check for it being sealed up good first. Cold air from the eaves is probably causing it. A new system will not fix that issue. If you can borrow or buy a thermal camera you will actually be able to see the problem with it.

 

[Robconn]

Also most likely you have an insulation or air leak issue with the vent that was dripping water. Cold air against a warm surface will create condensation. I would pull the cover for the register and make sure it’s sealed around the edges where it comes through the drywall and go in the attic and make sure it’s insulated correctly. Looks insulated fine from the pictures but air still moves through insulation so I would check for it being sealed up good first. Cold air from the eaves is probably causing it. A new system will not fix that issue. If you can borrow or buy a thermal camera you will actually be able to see the problem with it.

Great information. I appreciate you sharing your insights. The existing system is 14 seer. When I replace it I will keep you posted. I’ll be checking into a thermal camera.

 

[Bizywk]

So...Word-Of-The-Day toilet paper was all that was left when you went pandemic shopping?

LOL - I looked up "Vouchsafe" too.

 

[haknslash]

After years of bandaid fixing our HVAC unit we had ours swapped out last year and it’s been the best thing ever. I should have done it many years sooner. Our power bill literally dropped hundreds each month from how out of date and inefficient our old Ruud was! We went with the Bryant and that thing keeps the house cool, quiet and very efficient. I could have saved a fortune had I done the upgrades earlier and not dicked around with bandaid fixes, new compressors, capacitors every few years etc the list went on and on.

 

[Robconn]

Also most likely you have an insulation or air leak issue with the vent that was dripping water. Cold air against a warm surface will create condensation. I would pull the cover for the register and make sure it’s sealed around the edges where it comes through the drywall and go in the attic and make sure it’s insulated correctly. Looks insulated fine from the pictures but air still moves through insulation so I would check for it being sealed up good first. Cold air from the eaves is probably causing it. A new system will not fix that issue. If you can borrow or buy a thermal camera you will actually be able to see the problem with it.

Question: is there a tax credit based on seer rating? It was an after thought. I know certain appliances qualify.