Air Conditioning Problem

[woodchucker]

still not getting cool in here.
We just froze over the lines and I'm pretty sure the air handler coils.
I've got to believe that's why the air flow is low.

I may now have a leak in the refrigerant, not sure. I just shut it down, and will let the fan run. I have R22 in this old unit, so it won't pay to refill it without knowing where the leak is. I wish I hadn't said anything last week when bear was going through his issues, seems like I was asking for a problem.

 

[682bear]

still not getting cool in here.
We just froze over the lines and I'm pretty sure the air handler coils.
I've got to believe that's why the air flow is low.

I may now have a leak in the refrigerant, not sure. I just shut it down, and will let the fan run. I have R22 in this old unit, so it won't pay to refill it without knowing where the leak is. I wish I hadn't said anything last week when bear was going through his issues, seems like I was asking for a problem.

Sorry... I jinxed you...

-Bear

 

[mksj]

FYI Freon R22 is phased out and R410A is not too far behind, as there are mandates to phase out the higher MW freons that have more significant ozone depleting characteristics. After 2020, only recovered, recycled, or reclaimed supplies of R-22 will be available if you can find it. There are replacements like MO29 and MO99, which require a complete freon exchange (can't be mixed). It is all getting very costly if you need to do a complete recharge. I previously had a AC technician do it for one of my 5T AC units that used 410A, it had a very slow freon leak, it was over $1K, and did not fix the problem. He claimed the issue was ice crystals in the line. Many AC technicians have a high factor, the two that worked on my AC system had to keep calling the boss to tell them what to do. I ended investing in a Teso 557 digital AC gauge set and injected one of those AC leak solutions into the low pressure line, which seemed to fix the slow leak. I check the AC system operating parameters once a year, and about every other year I need to add a small amount of freon. The digital gauges have temperature sensors and calculates your superheat and subcooling for the particular refrigerate and pressures. It was a worthwhile investment for me. I also keep a spare set of capacitors and contactors, both of which are common failure components.

 

[woodchucker]

Sorry... I jinxed you...

-Bear

oh, you didn't jinx me, I jinxed me, by saying my unit has been going since 87...
honestly, I've known this day was coming soon. I figured it owes me nothing.

When I was working on the motor, I noticed all the tubing insulation was rotted away. I was saying to Barb I have to replace that... well... maybe not. I also accidently stepped on that tubing while tripping when putting the top back on the condenser box. That may be my leak, I don't know.
Right now cycling it manually on and off giving it time to rest between cycles rather than trying to recover. We only keep the temp at 75, and we are at 80.. but trying to do it on and off so it doesn't freeze over and I've got the blower on run full time

 

[tq60]

If it is freezing over, you do not have a leak.

You have lack of air flow through the evaporator.

Sent from my SM-G781V using Tapatalk

 

[woodchucker]

I was told that usually when you freeze over it's because your lacking freon. I just looked it up and that is a possiblity, as well as not enough airflow.
I'll take a look at the A frame, but the pipes were also freezing at the condenser, outside of it...

 

[Flyinfool]

The pipe between the compressor and the condenser should be to hot to touch.
The pipe coming out of the condenser should never be cooler than ambient air temp, usually warmer. If either condenser pipe has ice it is a leak.

Low airflow and/or low refrigerant affects the evaporator by allowing it to ice up.

When you stepped on the line did you by chance squish it so it is now a blockage? You can try checking that area with some soapy water to see if you created a leak.

If you created a leak, at some point as the pressure drops the system will just shut down by the low pressure safety switch.

 

[woodchucker]

The pipe between the compressor and the condenser should be to hot to touch.
The pipe coming out of the condenser should never be cooler than ambient air temp, usually warmer. If either condenser pipe has ice it is a leak.

Low airflow and/or low refrigerant affects the evaporator by allowing it to ice up.

When you stepped on the line did you by chance squish it so it is now a blockage? You can try checking that area with some soapy water to see if you created a leak.

If you created a leak, at some point as the pressure drops the system will just shut down by the low pressure safety switch.

I don't know. I'll check it in a while. Just finished working on the A frame, and the blower. The squirrel cage was pretty caked, this (pic) was after trying to brush it off with a stiff brush. I wound up giving up and bringing it upstairs and power washing it. It's clean now. I use pleated filters, not the high merv, just a basic pleated, so I was surprised the cage had that much dirt, considering it was cleaned a year or 2 ago.
The A frame was clean... I ran a brush on it, and nothing.

 

[woodchucker]

No the line is not bent or crushed
I think the wood protected it from that

 

[Flyinfool]

Another thing to check is if you have ducts in the house closed off for rooms that you do not use. The system was designed for s specific airflow, closing off ducts, or even closing the door on a room with no return air duct, will also contribute to icing because it reduces airflow through the A frame same as a clogged fan or filter would.