Retired now from 45 years as HVAC Tech. When I had a short like that in the outdoor unit the first thing I checked was for a small burn mark on the units cover where the control wires come in to the unit. The wires would be up against the door and would vibrate thru the insulation after a few years of running and finally short and leave a small burn mafk on the door. When you were putting the door back on it looked like a burn mark on door on the lable. Love your videos and love the way you troubleshoot. Your expertise shows.
1 ton for that Bonus room seems alot, no? They be changing filters with the construction going on. I like that short probe tool, gotta look in on getting one. Nice explanation of what, how, and to find a short. Nice job Ted.
You turn a lot of screws by hand every day. Your hands will eventually tell you they've got too many miles on them. Get a lightweight electric screwdriver and use it so you don't put miles on your hands spinning screws you don't need to spin by hand. One other thing, cutting the ring off the terminal and leaving the ferrule isn't an approved use of the wiring device because it's too hard. A terminal block is a pressure terminal that is worked out for the screw to press soft copper wire to make enough contact area to the tongue. The hard ferrule doesn't create as much area. The screw side mashes better but its electrically worthless, screw threads have only a tiny contact area. What you're doing usually works initially and many will work indefinitely or at least longer than the contactor, but eventually some will show the current crowding as hot spotting, it will look like localized corrosion. Eventually the terminal overheats and the contactor will fail. You do a good job of tightening the lug to try to compensate, but working up enough torque is likely to break the contactor case before you get enough area. Get an automatic wire stripper you like enough to use or a buy a bottle of quick connect screw terminals so you can leave the ring on.
Those lugs are not rated for a finely stranded wire, thus requiring a ferrule to crimp to so that the wires do no break under the set screw. So you are correct in the way you are installing wires into the device
Awesome tool. Does it matter putting 5amp fuse on board that says 3amp fuse on it? And if you take screws out of back of the contactor the black plastic on side, slides out and you can see the coil.
I think contactor coils are failing way more than they used to these days. Even though my last short was a bad tstat wire beween the A-H and tstat, on a 6yr old metal stud condo with a Carrier. I was using my lil popper. And I do compressor wires the same way in lugs.😶
You could have left that short pro connected then when you connected the contactor it would have engaged. I do it a lot but like you said, just another way to skin that damn cat. 😊
I can not get the fan speed turned up on Pepe's (Your old neighbor.) Trane. On fan only it blows on the lowest speed. It will not let me change taps. What am I missing?? PLEASE HEP a brother out!!!! I will be calling you about this soon.. : )
Glad I'm not the customer of yours. Because yes, there is a need to put gauge on it. Regardless of how you feel me as a customer is what I am paying for. Being a SERVICE PROVIDER is just that !! Provide FULL SERVICE, to the "best of your ability " I guess. Your now un-employed
First of all the customer was only billed for the low-voltage diagnostic, and the contactor replacement. So you’re mistaken, the customer did not pay for anything that I neglected to do. The general maintenance is done by a different tech at a different time of year, and is not combined with a repair situation, therefore, full service to the air conditioner or furnace was not performed nor was the customer billed for it. Second of all, it is up to me and my experience as to whether I see a need to connect gauges and affect a port that can easily create a leak for no reason. If you think you know better than the service tech, then you may as well service your own unit. And lastly, I agree with you, I am very glad that you’re not my customer either. If you don’t trust a professional, you should not hire them. And if you do hire a professional, you should trust them. You do not know more than me about Hvac. You have made that obvious. I just don’t throw gauges uselessly on every machine I walk up to. We take temperature readings, line temp readings, Delta T readings, etc. and there are many things we can do without disturbing the refrigeration system whatsoever. I hope your defensive posture pays off for you and other situations of life, but in this particular instance, it only makes you appear to be difficult to get along with.
I've been using a Short Pro Tool ever sense they came out and I don't know why more people are not using them.Good tool
Me too
Retired now from 45 years as HVAC Tech. When I had a short like that in the outdoor unit the first thing I checked was for a small burn mark on the units cover where the control wires come in to the unit. The wires would be up against the door and would vibrate thru the insulation after a few years of running and finally short and leave a small burn mafk on the door. When you were putting the door back on it looked like a burn mark on door on the lable. Love your videos and love the way you troubleshoot. Your expertise shows.
After watching you cut those connectors I started doing the same thing and it works great. So much better than trying to deal with any stranded wire.
Great example of tracking an electrical fault, thanks!
Interesting way you landed the incoming power wires to the contactor. Makes sense. Better contact with wires. I’m gonna use that. Thanks!
Nice troubleshooting and work Ted.
This was only a simple fix because of your experience and knowledge. I dont think a youngin' would have figured it out quite that easily.
1 ton for that Bonus room seems alot, no? They be changing filters with the construction going on. I like that short probe tool, gotta look in on getting one. Nice explanation of what, how, and to find a short. Nice job Ted.
Good work and nice demo of the Short Pro Tool! Thanks!
Gonna start calling you the one handed film bandit. Great vids man!
You turn a lot of screws by hand every day. Your hands will eventually tell you they've got too many miles on them. Get a lightweight electric screwdriver and use it so you don't put miles on your hands spinning screws you don't need to spin by hand.
One other thing, cutting the ring off the terminal and leaving the ferrule isn't an approved use of the wiring device because it's too hard. A terminal block is a pressure terminal that is worked out for the screw to press soft copper wire to make enough contact area to the tongue. The hard ferrule doesn't create as much area. The screw side mashes better but its electrically worthless, screw threads have only a tiny contact area. What you're doing usually works initially and many will work indefinitely or at least longer than the contactor, but eventually some will show the current crowding as hot spotting, it will look like localized corrosion. Eventually the terminal overheats and the contactor will fail. You do a good job of tightening the lug to try to compensate, but working up enough torque is likely to break the contactor case before you get enough area. Get an automatic wire stripper you like enough to use or a buy a bottle of quick connect screw terminals so you can leave the ring on.
I am getting one of those short pro tools. Great video as usual.
Love that tool. Better than the little popper.
Great diagnosis and working the issue quickly and efficiently!
Great video. Very informative. Finding low voltage shorts always gives me problems.
Videos on back to back days . YES !
Using those old connectors as ferrules is perfectly OK. Much better than bare wires. 👍
“Short Pro Tool” with current limiting and auto reset for the win. Beats the heck out of a Little Popper.
Nice job...Nice house too. Plenty of HVAC...all 2 stories should 2 or 3 units for full control and options. A few smaller units tend to work best.
Great job Ted I have tool need to break it out and use more !
Nice looking install ... Love these chasing shorts vids that uses good troubleshooting like you did ... Thx
This is one of the better videos I’ve watched, of yours 👍
I do the same thing with contactor lugs. Never had a problem.
I leave the short pro connected while testing outside. Finds the problem quick.
I've yet to see my Short Pro light up. Somehow I had imagined it would light up orange.
Holy cow I haven't seen a dico thermostat in a while basically white rodgers 😊
A nice check over job Ted 👍 Au
Ted is The Man! 😎👍
🚨🚨🚨
Those lugs are not rated for a finely stranded wire, thus requiring a ferrule to crimp to so that the wires do no break under the set screw. So you are correct in the way you are installing wires into the device
Great little tool, Where did you purchase it? Thanks for the video.
Awesome tool. Does it matter putting 5amp fuse on board that says 3amp fuse on it? And if you take screws out of back of the contactor the black plastic on side, slides out and you can see the coil.
You could OHM out your contactor from furnace or thermostat.
Ah, the famous Carrier run cap that you'll be back for soon.
It certainly isn’t…, such good English!!! 👍
I think contactor coils are failing way more than they used to these days. Even though my last short was a bad tstat wire beween the A-H and tstat, on a 6yr old metal stud condo with a Carrier. I was using my lil popper. And I do compressor wires the same way in lugs.😶
Nice. Good find Ted.
IMO that's a more secure way to secure those wires on the contactor. I wish they were all like that.
Filter drier in the attic space is crazy lol
This is Not Simple.....a lot of experiences going into troubleshooting to pinpoint the Problem 👍
How many ohms are you looking for when you ohm out the contactor?
what screw driver is that you use??
Thats a nice pen you have their Ted.
1.5 pole contactors should always read
one of the best video. I stared to wach all your videos. can you tell me where can I buy the screw driver that one you use in the video
That's a Klein, not sure model.
By doing what you did I'd think you'd get alot better contact instead of just putting bare wire in the contactor
As always very nice video
Are you sponsored by the short pro tool can I use something to get a discount on it
Great troubleshooting my man!
How many times have you forgot to mark the box and it wound up in your parts bin ? Lol
Excellent video 👍 👍
Nice work 😊
You could have left that short pro connected then when you connected the contactor it would have engaged. I do it a lot but like you said, just another way to skin that damn cat. 😊
Check the muffler bearings
Yes, and the blinker fluid.
What tool is that you are using
Short pro tool
A good idea is to add 50ml of sulphuric acid to the compressor before regassing
I ohm y and commong inside and itll lead u to contactor straight off bat sometimes
Smart !!
If it's Dico it must be the best.
I can not get the fan speed turned up on Pepe's (Your old neighbor.) Trane. On fan only it blows on the lowest speed. It will not let me change taps. What am I missing?? PLEASE HEP a brother out!!!! I will be calling you about this soon.. : )
Call me up man …. I can tell you how.
Last
Nice job
Cool
I have been cutting them ends off for years
Sell them some new modern T-stats when you return with filters. Those old, mismatched ones look hideous.
Big house!!!
And beautiful, like so many of the homes he works in
Tool link?
I believe the contactor is called a double pole single throw contact
Ted Cook is workin’ again, Y’all !
Someone had red on common is supposed to be blue
Helicopter 🚁
very n8ce trouble shooting! china keeps you in business thats for sure!
Ted
NO LIGHT IN A ATTIC WITH MECHANICALS IN IT IS SO C H E A P DID I SAY C H E A P
Glad I'm not the customer of yours. Because yes, there is a need to put gauge on it. Regardless of how you feel me as a customer is what I am paying for. Being a SERVICE PROVIDER is just that !! Provide FULL SERVICE, to the "best of your ability " I guess. Your now un-employed
First of all the customer was only billed for the low-voltage diagnostic, and the contactor replacement. So you’re mistaken, the customer did not pay for anything that I neglected to do. The general maintenance is done by a different tech at a different time of year, and is not combined with a repair situation, therefore, full service to the air conditioner or furnace was not performed nor was the customer billed for it.
Second of all, it is up to me and my experience as to whether I see a need to connect gauges and affect a port that can easily create a leak for no reason. If you think you know better than the service tech, then you may as well service your own unit.
And lastly, I agree with you, I am very glad that you’re not my customer either. If you don’t trust a professional, you should not hire them. And if you do hire a professional, you should trust them. You do not know more than me about Hvac. You have made that obvious. I just don’t throw gauges uselessly on every machine I walk up to. We take temperature readings, line temp readings, Delta T readings, etc. and there are many things we can do without disturbing the refrigeration system whatsoever. I hope your defensive posture pays off for you and other situations of life, but in this particular instance, it only makes you appear to be difficult to get along with.
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