A/C Question

[Kstornado11]

Anyone know anything about A/C problems? our A/C is freezing up, blowing hot air. Too early to call the landlord, doubt they could get anyone out here on the weekend, excessive heat warning here AGAIN today.

[Alice In TX/MO]

Turn it off at the breaker and let it rest and thaw for at least 1/2 an hour.

Make sure the cooling fins on the outside unit are clean. Hose them off if they aren't.

Turn it back on and watch/listen/monitor.

Call the landlord as soon as you can. The AC folks are set up to work on weekends in a situation like this.

[sunflower-n-ks]

Have you cleaned it good? Not just the filter, but the fins, etc at the front also. If it gets packed with crud, it will freeze up and blow hot air.

There have been some discussions on how to clean them on HT lately.

[Alice In TX/MO]

How to clean the outside unit.
http://www.familyhandyman.com/DIY-Pr...-in-the-spring

[Sawmill Jim]

Low on freon if the return isn't plunged or both

[Cabin Fever]

When was the last time you changed out your furnance filter? A dirty filter - which reduces air flow - can cause the AC to freeze up.

[Energy Rebel]

Do all of the above. Freezing line has 2 causes.
1) Low on freon, which you can't do anything about yourself, unless your an A/C tech.
2) Dirty filter and coils, which you can probably clean yourself.

But turn it off first.
1) to let the lines unfreeze.
2) Because it has to be ambient temperature for the tech to check the pressure in the lines anyway.

[Kstornado11]

DH went out & cleaned it all out, the filter was just changed a few weeks ago, is decent. There is ice on the tube /hose thing coming from it, & on the round thing inside...when the AC guy came last year he charged the freon...we turned it off & the ice melted off, but when we turned it on it's starting to form again... this AC doesn't work well at all, & this has been just a miserably HOT summer.

[Kstornado11]

I turned it back off, by the way. Maybe we didn't leave it off long enough the first time? Just checked filter, is really dirty! Going to buy new ones, wow it was just a few weeks ago I replaced it!!

[Energy Rebel]

Sounds like you gotta leak somewhere, otherwise he wouldn't have had to charge the freon up.
Won't be right until leak is found. He should have used a halogen detector to find it.

[agmantoo]

Did the service person find a leak prior to adding freon? It is illegal just to top up the freon without attempting to locate a leak. Just out of curiosity, what did the service person charge per lb of freon and how many lbs were added?

[Sawmill Jim]

I do my own Fixing a leak in a old unit is expensive now days

An ill eagle is a sick bird There is a law against everything if you look for it or don't look for it .

One my pet peeves is people driving with their handicapped card hanging on their mirror lots more dangerous than a lb of R22

[agmantoo]

Sawmill Jim
Can I come and video your continued topping up of a freon leaking unit? Fix the leak.

[Sawmill Jim]

Originally Posted by agmantoo

Sawmill Jim
Can I come and video your continued topping up of a freon leaking unit? Fix the leak.

Had a fellow say if he turned me in once he would get $25,000 for it Told him if he did he needed to ask for more as his hospital bill would far exceed his reward .

Our Gov would let older folks die from excess heat due to what should be a $75.00 deal once a year verses $500.00 temporary fix on an old unit or several thousand for a change out .

We need to take our life back from the Gov

[Nevada]

Originally Posted by Energy Rebel

1) Low on freon, which you can't do anything about yourself, unless your an A/C tech.

Sort of. While it goes without saying that you need to know what you're doing to charge an A/C system, if it's a newer system you don't have to be a licensed tech any longer to buy supplies and service an A/C unit.

The newer R-410A does not require a license to buy or use, although most A/C suppliers still won't sell it without one. I don't know what's up with that, but that's the norm around here. But you can order refrigerant, gauges, and other A/C supplies online legally.

[Kstornado11]

No clue what the guy charged/did, the landlord paid for it.

[Curtis B]

I am assuming you have central air. If you do and your filter was that bad you need to check your evaporater coil inside. Dirty condenser coils (the ones outside) will not cause your unit to freeze up, they will cause your system to basicaly overheat. If your coils inside and filter is clean, and it is still freezing up get ahold of your landlord, it is his resopsibility to pay for a tech, even on the weekend.

[Kstornado11]

Landlord said to check the A coil, what/wherever that is! No clue how to open it up & look,and DH is at work at his weekend job.

[Alice In TX/MO]

I posted a link above with pics and instructions for just that.

You are a powerful woman. You can do it.

The A coil would be what the lines coming in from the outside unit hook to . Usually located in the duct-work or inside the furnace enclosure & sometimes in a metal enclosure called an air handler .