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TobyWan
Lv 4
TobyWan asked in Home & GardenMaintenance & Repairs · 1 decade ago

Home Air Conditioning Problem?

My AC in my home has been jumpy lately. It works, then doesn't, then starts working again. When it's not working I'll check the intake and I can hear the fan running, however no cold air is coming out. I've gone outside to the condensor and that is always running, whether the ac is working or not. A friend suggested the HVAC might need more freon or coolant but I don't know..

I'm going to get a service tech guy to come out but if there's a simple solution I'd love to give it a go before spending the money on ridiculous service charges ($250 just to come out and take a look)

Update:

I've turned the thermostat up to 80, let it sit, then turned it down to 68 with no changes.

Update 2:

Just a quick update. After reading a bunch of HVAC websites, I decided to check the coils in the attic. They are frozen like the north pole.

The outside fan had ice around it as well. I'm gonna call another place to see about $85, sounds much more reasonable. In the meantime though, I'm thinking the ice is a problem in and of its self. I cleaned the coils on the outside fan but don't want to touch the copper tubing on the attic coils because of freon leakage (assuming there isn't a leak already).

6 Answers

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  • slg70
    Lv 4
    1 decade ago
    Favorite Answer

    well it sounds like the unit is low on refrigerant. the A- coil is frozen up when you here the fan but nothing coming out. ac s will freeze when the pressure hits around 50 psi on the gauges.

    make sure your filter is clean at your furnace and your outside ac coils are clean. hose them off if they are.

    250 is way out of line for a service call. 85 sure 110 on a weekend but 250? call someone else. watch out for those guys who advertise 25 dollars bc you lll be paying through the nose by the time they re done.

    our price for service is 85 plus the cost of refrigerant .maybe aonther 100 or so.

  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago

    If the outside unit is ALWAYS running, then it could be that the contactor is stuck in the closed position. This will cause the compressor and outside fan to run even when the thermostat says the house is cool enough and tells the inside fan to shut off.

    This will result in the evaporator to freeze up, so that the next time the inside fan comes on, it will stay on till you shut the whole thing down and let it thaw out. .

    See if the larger of the two copper tubes running between the units has frost on it If so, go outside and kill the breaker to the outside unit. this will allow the fan inside to help thaw out the inside unit.

    \

    Lucky for you, a contactor is about 25 bucks wholesale and takes a few minutes to change. In other words, it is about the cheapest repair a tech would be required for.

    I'd say no more than 2 benjamins total, unless there are other things wrong.

    (twenty five bucks if you know how to do it yourself)

  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago

    I agree with the person that says you may have a low refrigerant charge. It sounds like your cooling coil is frozen up. A dirty filter can cause freeze up also. If you are low on refrigerant, make sure the tech shows you where the leak is and fixes it. Sometimes you can have a very very minor leak that cannot be found. Its rare but happens. If the tech says your low on refrigerant, make sure he at least takes the time to look for a leak! And fix it if he finds it. There is no such thing as adding gas for a tune up. These are closed systems and do not loose gas unless there is a leak. If there is a leak, make sure he fixes it!

    Source(s): Maintenance Mechanic
  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago

    This summer enjoy some good and pocket friendly cooling device. QUIETCOOL Patented Whole House cooling Fans which are engineered to greatly reduce the noise of the fan while creating the maximum airflow and using the least amount of electricity.

    Source(s): http://www.quietcoolsystems.com/
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  • papaw
    Lv 7
    1 decade ago

    Try lowering the thermostat temp a little. It could be the thermostat is set high and the AC is just running according to the thermostat setting.

    Papaw

  • Anna
    1 decade ago

    You probably have to get someone to do the job, or if you are good at that stuff you might wanna try.. if you arent good at that stuff then you should hire someone

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