[delgadobb]

Originally Posted by topaz420

Wow -- A/C in my 5 year-old house just pooped the bed, just as the hot season is starting!

Let's hope Old Republic comes through on my warranty

It's possible the problem is the run capacitor. My wife works in property management & one of the HVAC guys checked out our A/C as a side job after we got a ridiculous quote from a HVAC company recommended way too much work (our system was 4 years old at the time, nearing 5 years now - two A/C units, one for upstairs & one for downstairs). Her HVAC guy said it was only the run capacitor, one of which was showing signs of wear - our upstairs unit would make a loud noise whenever it kicked in. I think it only cost us $80 for replacement of the run capacitor on the upstairs unit. He commented that's the most likely thing to be problematic until a system gets older.

Everything's been running fine since then. We'll check the run capacitors periodically as a proactive measure to hopefully save on long-term costs. Here's a youtube video showing how simple a fix it can be (ALWAYS be careful to shut off electricity & use safe practices when doing this kind of stuff):


AC fan not working - how to repair broken HVAC Run Start Capacitor - air condition - YouTube

BTW, I mentioned Old Republic tonight & my wife mentioned it's the only home warranty company she'd use. Although they're not perfect & sometimes won't pay for full replacement of items, apparently they're the most fair & consistent of the ones with which she deals. They deal with a number of home warranty companies & apparently the others pale in comparison to Old Republic. I don't have any direct experience with them, just relaying what she said ...

[topaz420]

Originally Posted by delgadobb

It's possible the problem is the run capacitor. My wife works in property management & one of the HVAC guys checked out our A/C as a side job after we got a ridiculous quote from a HVAC company recommended way too much work (our system was 4 years old at the time, nearing 5 years now - two A/C units, one for upstairs & one for downstairs).

BTW, I mentioned Old Republic tonight & my wife mentioned it's the only home warranty company she'd use.

Thanks so much for the video - I hope it's something that simple! The fan does run but the compressor is making a screechy kind of sound and not cooling at all so I turned it off for fear of damaging it further.

The Old Republic website is quite functional and even after hours, I was able to schedule a service call with an HVAC company -- fingers crossed!

Just in the nick of time too -- only two weeks left on my home warranty!

[tiger08]

Originally Posted by topaz420

Thanks so much for the video - I hope it's something that simple! The fan does run but the compressor is making a screechy kind of sound and not cooling at all so I turned it off for fear of damaging it further.

The Old Republic website is quite functional and even after hours, I was able to schedule a service call with an HVAC company -- fingers crossed!

Just in the nick of time too -- only two weeks left on my home warranty!

If the fan is running and the compressor making noise, its possible the compressor is on its way out. Even in a newer system like that, things can go wrong. Sometimes a bad install can cause it, poor airflow, dirty filters, etc.
If the compressor is indeed bad, make sure the home warranty company does all the proper procedures for a compressor changeout, they sometimes like to take short cuts.

[topaz420]

Wow, couldn't be happier with Old Republic.

Midnight last night, submitted service order via website.
7:30 am got call from local HVAC contractor
Called them back at 8:30, got an all-day window for service
Technician arrived at 11:30a, fixed by 2:30p

$1,500 worth of repairs (bad compressor, broken fan, broken thermostat, out of freon, etc, etc)
Paid $60 out-of-pocket (Old Republic Deductible)

Happy!

[tiger08]

Originally Posted by topaz420

Wow, couldn't be happier with Old Republic.

Midnight last night, submitted service order via website.
7:30 am got call from local HVAC contractor
Called them back at 8:30, got an all-day window for service
Technician arrived at 11:30a, fixed by 2:30p

$1,500 worth of repairs (bad compressor, broken fan, broken thermostat, out of freon, etc, etc)
Paid $60 out-of-pocket (Old Republic Deductible)

Happy!

Thats good. Did they investigate why the old compressor died? Did they flush the system out real well? Compressors dont just quit like that, something killed it.

[topaz420]

Originally Posted by tiger08

Thats good. Did they investigate why the old compressor died? Did they flush the system out real well? Compressors dont just quit like that, something killed it.

They said it looked like no one ever did maintenance on it -- everything was jammed up due to 5 years of caked on dust and dirt (previous owner) that just ground everything to a halt and burned/killed the motors of everything that turns

The first and only owner was a guy who partied every night, had a BMW but missed so many payments his house got foreclosed, so I totally he believe he never did a thing to this house. The air filters inside the house were soot-black too

[orca17]

Lack of maintenance will kill you.

[FML157]

how much should one pay for yearly A/C maintenance?

[Everdeen]

I lived in a house for 12 years and never did any maintenance on my AC. In fact, every house I have ever lived in the HVAC unit was not maintained. Other than a couple of minor and easy fixes, I've never had a problem.

[tiger08]

Originally Posted by Everdeen

I lived in a house for 12 years and never did any maintenance on my AC. In fact, every house I have ever lived in the HVAC unit was not maintained. Other than a couple of minor and easy fixes, I've never had a problem.

As long as people keep their filters changed, most of the time they can skate by without maintenance. I usually take our roof top units apart every couple of years and wash the coils out but thats about it.

Some companies like to use scare tactics by saying that this part is going bad and that part is going bad and you must change it soon or it's going to leave you without air, I say bs! Keep things maintained and change parts when they go bad.

I had to change a condenser fan motor the other day on a unit, because some company came in and told the people that the motor was leaking oil and wouldnt last long. All motors weep a little oil out of them and this one was the same way but the lady of the house thought it would blow up if the motor wasnt replaced. These people pay 90 bucks a year for a maintenance plan and when I removed the top of the unit, it was filthy inside, including the coil. Makes me wonder what you get for 90 bucks a year.