Ahhhhhhhhh......

batjac Fri Aug 12, 2016 2:11 am

I’m having to take a couple of months off work for health reasons, and to tell the truth, I’m actually looking forward to being away from the job for the next 10 weeks. So I get home, thinking “I’m Free!” But when I open the door… 81 degrees inside?!? I checked the thermostat and it was on and set to 72. But no AC! Great way to start my time off.

So I pulled out my multi-meter and used my troubleshoot-fu, and troubleshot down to a relay on the furnace control module. Naturally the relay is non-replaceable. So a couple of hours on the internet confirmed that the module was obsolete (from 1990), no NOS to be found, and that a reputable replacement module would be $330 shipped. I didn’t want to go the cheap, no-name route, so I sprang for a name brand module. I even sprung for 2nd day air, as it was 90 degrees today and supposed to be near 100 tomorrow.

So I was hopping from one foot to the other (figuratively) waiting for the new module to arrive by UPS. It came this evening , and I just finished installing it and doing a little re-wiring needed for the new module that the old module didn’t have.

Ahhhh….. Blessed Air Conditioning!!!

The Sweaty Mark

Marleysky Fri Aug 12, 2016 2:56 am

Congratulations on your successful troubleshooting and repair! If feels good to DoIt Yourself, when you can.
I had an easy one earlier last month. The AC on my sons new house worked perfect last summer. Shut it off for the winter, used a leaf blower to clear the piles of oak leaves as fall set in. Fast forward to the first really hot day this summer and I get a call, hey Dad, the AC isn't working! I drive over with a "spare" window AC unit for their bedroom. Physically check outdoor unit, can't get the compressor to start. I can hear the furnace relay pull in, but no power to the outdoor unit. No tools with me either! So, I come back a day or two later with meters and gauges and tools. Remove the large access panel to the control compartment and find that it is packed full of dried oak leaves! So full it wouldn't let the power relay pull in. Blew out the leaves with the same leaf blower and poof, instant air conditioning! I'm my own worst enemy. Doh!

KariFS Fri Aug 12, 2016 10:39 am

Darn, this reminds me of the busted relay in the central-vacuum unit of my house DAMMIT!

The switch on the vacuum handle doesn't work, the only way to start or stop the motor is to go to the unit and switch it on from there. The control board is available as a replacement but it is something like 150€. But the relay that most likely is the culprit is a generic one, available for a couple of euros. I am waiting for the right moment to disassemble the unit and check the exact type of that relay...

Marleysky, you are lucky that the ac unit didn't start, all those leaves might have started a fire. I don't have ac in my house, our summers are mild and just closing the blinds and windows for the day and opening the windows for the night is enough. AC might be useful for a month or so if the summer is really hot. Of course the houses around here are well insulated because of the freeze-your-nuts-off winters, I have like 8" of insulation in the walls and probably a foot and a half on top. Windows have 3 glasses, 2 of them have argon or something between them. These and a tile roof helps to keep the heat out in the summer as well as the cold out in the winter.

EDIT: of course I have a forced ventilation system, it is equipped with heat recovery system, filters etc but it does not cool the intake air Smile

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