The Heat is on

[gnappi]

I'm in So. Flo also and have run the gamut of AC problems.

If it is the fan, sometimes you can "kick start it" with a pencil. Fans are easy and reasonably inexpensive to replace

If the fan is bad, the compressor should turn on then off later. If the compressor does not turn on, check 220 at the output of the contactor and the fuses, AND the breaker that feeds it. On both 110 may be on one side not on the other or zero volts at the contactor output.

Start caps will generally bulge when they're bad.

I've had all of these at multiple times and wound up replacing it.

Where in So Flo are you?

 

[MaxMan]

I'm in So. Flo also and have run the gamut of AC problems.

If it is the fan, sometimes you can "kick start it" with a pencil. Fans are easy and reasonably inexpensive to replace

If the fan is bad, the compressor should turn on then off later. If the compressor does not turn on, check 220 at the output of the contactor and the fuses, AND the breaker that feeds it. On both 110 may be on one side not on the other or zero volts at the contactor output.

Start caps will generally bulge when they're bad.

I've had all of these at multiple times and wound up replacing it.

Where in So Flo are you?

Palm Beach County. The guy that came was Ed at ProTech Air. First rate.

 

[blume357]

Gave him the most sterling review my feeble mind and limited vocabulary could think of.

good for you man... glad you finally found someone from the 'old school'.
I went to a home a realtor I do work for is buying...

Told then the chimney and fireplace looked fine, needed a few things but was good to go.
damper handle in the fireplace was broken... I replaced it.

Then when I was all done I told them that if I went by my industry standards the chimney would need between 5 and 25 thousand dollars worth of work.
My industry is like most of those HVAC companies. every one is only looking for the big job and really don't care about giving anyone a break.

 

[Fox Mike]

Got a little warm here too (date is incorrect). 19% humidity would be a Godsend

 

[MaxMan]

Got a little warm here too (date is incorrect). 19% humidity would be a Godsend

There ya go. The humidity is a killer.

 

[jyo]

A/C guys can be just as bad as car mechanics when females call and know nothing about A/C---as in "Sorry your system is shot/broken/too old, etc. and must be replaced."---just sign here and we've got you on the hook for years!!
Kinda like the "Check engine" light on your car---I call it the "Scare the girls light!" Or, OMG the engines gonna blow-up and leave me stranded on the freeway in the 100 degree heat... It REALLY pays to know the repair guys thru recommended, honest repair guys---harder to find these days...!

 

[MaxMan]

A/C guys can be just as bad as car mechanics when females call and know nothing about A/C---as in "Sorry your system is shot/broken/too old, etc. and must be replaced."---just sign here and we've got you on the hook for years!!
Kinda like the "Check engine" light on your car---I call it the "Scare the girls light!" Or, OMG the engines gonna blow-up and leave me stranded on the freeway in the 100 degree heat... It REALLY pays to know the repair guys thru recommended, honest repair guys---harder to find these days...!

There is apparently a cabal of the guys that sign up with the online services. They are most likely qualified operators, but they are akso very skilled salespeople and have taken very effective sales courses. The thing that really stuck in my craw was the guy from the internet wanted to charge me $ 1600 for ad new fan and motor, the guy that fixed it charged $ 550.00 for the motor and recharge (1 pound of freon) . He also said you can get your own motor for $ 300 +/- and put it in yourself. Needed to get the air going that night and I dont mind paying honest people doing honest work.

 

[jyo]

The whole trick is sorting thru the scammers and finding honest workers...! A few years back, my 1912 house needed a new roof---it didn't leak, but Allstate had an aerial photo showing what they said was a bad roof... So, it was replace the roof or NO home owners insurance! So, I called around and got a few quotes on how much it was gonna cost... Various contractors said: $13,000 to $16,000 to replace the wood under and put in a new roof with updated vents...
I remembered a family friend who repaired and flipped houses in our area and called him---he recommended a guy named Jose (a genuine, legit contractor) that he used for many roof jobs and had an actual crew (three actually)---Jose said $8,500 for everything! The very next day, crew #1 showed up and peeled the old roofs off and hauled it away! The day after that, a second crew appeared and replaced all the wood under the roof! The third day, another crew appeared and installed the new roof surface and new vents! Wow! How cool was that! They did super good work and were VERY easy to work with...
I ended up spending just under $10,000 because I had his guys do some extra work on the outside of the house and some painting and installing some hand rails on stairs that Allstate insisted on... Just knowing the right guys saved the day!!

 

[thinckley]

I had my AC go out Monday night. I woke up at 1:30 to 80 degrees in the house. Go into panic mode. Check the filter (I've been doing some drywall work in the main hallway), It's pretty dirty for two weeks old, so replace it. No luck. Check the compressor, it's pretty filthy too, maybe it overheated. Rinse it off, still no luck. Send a message through my preferred company's website at 3:30 am asking for the next available non-emergency appointment. They open at 8:00. 7:30 I get a text; they can have a guy out between 9:00 and 12:00 (Perfect). Guy shows up just after 9:00, start checking everything also. Hits the manual start on the compressor and it fires up. He checks the thermostat, (remember the drywall work?), turns out I had broken a wire inside the insulation, so I didn't see it when I checked the night before. Quick fix, $75 out the door. Reinforced why they are my go-to for plumbing and HVAC.

 

[MaxMan]

Many years ago we needed a new roof. The house was a two story with a gambrel roof (like a barn). Called a couple of roofers never got a call back. Situation was serious so called a Home Depot contractor came out and gave a bid of $5000. However, I think he went and priced out the job for real and realized the gambrel was a problem. And he started to not return calls. I called Home Depot headquarters in Atlanta. The lady was nice, she said you will hear from them tomorrow. Next day for the call in aw week the did the job for the committed price.

 

[Paladin]

Several years ago my son called and advised that the blower motor in his furnace wasn't coming up to speed. They called their heating/AC guy who said they need a new blower motor for $900. He was going to charge $500 for the motor and $400 labor. I told my son that's ridiculous since at that time a blower motor for that furnace cost $125.00 and takes less than an hour to replace. More like half an hour actually.

I gathered up some tools and drove the hour to their house to check it out myself. Long story short, it turned out the start capacitor for the fan motor was bad. A $7 part fixed the problem.

The service tech had to know that only the start capacitor was bad and yet tried to con them into a $900 repair. Which I suspect they would have only replaced the bad capacitor and still charged them $900 without replacing the motor.

Here's where the plot thickens. The HVAC tech from this company had just done the Spring inspection and cleaning of the inside and outside systems two days before my son noticed the fan issue. I believe the service tech swapped in a bad capacitor to generate a phony costly repair.

I contacted the furnace manufacturer to try and track down the date on the bad capacitor from the serial number. They said it appears to be much older than the furnace build date but they could not verify it due to the randomness of their serial number records for parts.

Upon checking their system further, I determined no spring or fall service had ever been done on the inside or outside units in the 4 years they've been paying for it. The inside of the furnace was still full of original installation debris. Like clipped wire pieces, stripped wire insulation and drywall joint compound sanding dust from when the house was built.

The outside AC unit control box was packed with spider webs, dead Japanese beetles and earwigs along with a wasp nest. And, this was supposed to have been cleaned and inspected two days prior?

I called the owner of the HVAC company and had him come over and inspect the work that was "not" done by his service tech and confront him on the phony motor replacement. All he said was his guy could have done a "little" better job on the cleaning and wouldn't concede that the blower motor did not need to be replaced. He warned, they'll be sorry when the blower motor quits in a few days and he has to come back there on an emergency service call which will cost them a lot more. I called him a crook and threw him out of the house.

By the way, this was 20 years ago and that blower motor is still running. Also, I am not a HVAC guy, but have a little mechanical apptitude and some common sense.

 

[Watertender]

Paladin, so called service people like that whiz me off to no end. I ran a business servicing medical, dental and chiropractic equipment for 23 years and never gouged a customer. I worked with a larger outfit on dental equipment and quit them because of their business practices. Many times it was just a capacitor or filter or switch or a plugged line on a piece of equipment. I would replace the bad part and have them back in business in short order time.

There were times that I recommended that they replace or upgrade a piece of equipment but the vast majority of time I could repair it. The dental company wanted me to pad the parts used on the job and inflate the labor as well. The sales people didn't like me because I wouldn't play their game.

I ultimately ended up retiring from a State position as Chief Engineer and currently work as a 1st Class Engineer for a hospital. Several of the companies that service medical equipment for the hospital have tried to hire me but I am happy with the job I have.

 

[foolslife]

Could be hotter!
View attachment 49578

We spent 43 years in that heat then retired and moved to the White Mountains in 2020. Just cam back from our walk and boy was it beautiful!

 

[MaxMan]

Paladin, so called service people like that whiz me off to no end. I ran a business servicing medical, dental and chiropractic equipment for 23 years and never gouged a customer. I worked with a larger outfit on dental equipment and quit them because of their business practices. Many times it was just a capacitor or filter or switch or a plugged line on a piece of equipment. I would replace the bad part and have them back in business in short order time.

There were times that I recommended that they replace or upgrade a piece of equipment but the vast majority of time I could repair it. The dental company wanted me to pad the parts used on the job and inflate the labor as well. The sales people didn't like me because I wouldn't play their game.

I ultimately ended up retiring from a State position as Chief Engineer and currently work as a 1st Class Engineer for a hospital. Several of the companies that service medical equipment for the hospital have tried to hire me but I am happy with the job I have.

That is what is important. If you love your job you never work a day in your life.

 

[Watertender]

That is what is important. If you love your job you never work a day in your life.

Bill Ruger said that too