This is a reference book quality video. Way to go man. Thorough without being dismissive. Tenacious on follow up confirmation. Brilliant demonstrations on failure mode and mitigation.
5 years ago. Remember that unit being surveyed for a Lennox replacement and Chris having to lift the unit with 2x4s and 4x4s to get the curb dimensions. Definitely been a while with that thing. *Not to mention the unit around the corner with the 12x12 duct opening.
ive replaced 2 outdoor disconnects this year due to burned out contacts. they had blown fuses. also, ive noticed the name plate on the units often have the lower amp reading than on the compressor. its very annoying. Love your channel. I'm learning so much. this is my first year in light commercial. it's kicking my ass but i love it! I want to be at your level . you are a real technician.
Hoo-ee, I can smell that disconnect switch from this side of the screen. Whole thing's a stinker, but you made it so the customer has it back (for another month, week...)! 👏 👏
Great video! 95% of what I work on is from the Regan administration and I know that "head scratching" feeling well. Great work. Thank you for your video.
My very first thought at the beginning of the video was that Square D disconnect was at least 50% of the problem. The 3 phase wiring looked BAD‼️Bad terminals and connections = HEAT that makes for voltage drops and more heat. I’m surprised that disconnect didn’t take out a compressor and or blower motors. It’s SO frustrating when you’re having to deal with customers like that. Either spend the money or decide how to operate the business WITHOUT air conditioning! EXCELLENT video and troubleshooting👍👍
2 fuses blown means a phase to phase overload or a single phase problem. One fuse blown phase to ground short. Seal tight requires a ground for 20 amps or more because the seal tight will not carry enough current to trip the OL.
Good video buddy. You are absolutely right those crazy service calls are the best teachers sometimes. Keep the videos coming I have shown my apprentice your videos and I believe it’s helping so thanks buddy. Oh and your right it’s been a crazy summer
Great video Chris! By the way you are an excellent technician. I like how you don't stop until you find the issue. Whoever is watching should take note. Great stuff!
Old shop i worked in used 12/2 house wire as 3 phase and metal conduit for ground. The ground in the 12 2 was the 3rd phase. The conduit would glow in some areas.
I replaced that same exact disconnect on a Lennox when I helped out at our Phoenix branch back in June. The L1 connection at the top was completely burnt up and disintegrated and no longer making contact, while that plastic cover was completely melted and warped. Yeah that heat wave was Brutal. I was in Colton maybe the day before you made this video, it got up to 122° on that roof that day.
Estupendo trabajo el realizado Crhis, y muy gentil de tu parte para que tu cliente tenga la oportunidad de realizar el cambio de ése equipo. Sabios consejos los de hoy. Saludos desde Coacalco Edo de México.
Don't measure 3 phase voltage to ground, always measure across two phases. You can still measure 115v to ground on all 3 phases with a phase missing because you're measuring another phase through the load.
I work in industrial electrical and until a 35 years in industrial maintenance : a month ago I have never seen an arcing disconnect before either. Mine was 480 V and it was really bad and yes, it overheated and blew the fuse because of the heat from the arc
Turn off the main breaker that feeds the disconnect. Shine up the blades and the pinch contacts with some emery paper, squeeze the contacts together to tighten them up. Good as new. Weather, dust, dirt and oxidation can cause intermittent contact in a disconnect over time. It's not a weather tight disconnect so dirt is going to get in there. One can install a new one, but it really isn't necessary.
25:33 they had spring steel clips that squeezed in and held tension on them, the spring steel rusted/broke and is long gone. same thing happens to circuit breakers where they push on to the bus bar lug. it's likely plated copper terminals, the heat cycling after tension loss has softened it further. typical of what I see on everything electrical that has or had "spring tension" connections. which is why I'm waiting for the push on/lever wire splice failures to start showing up. 😒
I should see my high point in ignition refrigeration My very first job that I ever have in my life was auto electrical and this help me build my electrical skills in engineering and I was grateful for having that first job I hated it but it did help me for the rest of my life
I suspect this is one of those situations where a replacement unit would trigger certain rules and require a bunch of other expensive stuff to be done to remain compliant with code and be legal.
Measuring to ground on a 3 fase system when there is a load can get confusing. You might see 120V on a fase while its not getting voltage from the disconnect, it could be that you are measuring feedback from the primary coil of the low voltage transformer. With those issues I would make sure there is no load or only measure fase to fase.
@@KevinfinityDrums Sorry, fase is how we say it in the Netherlands. Thanks for correcting! Typing English as a second language is one thing but technical English is even harder😁
Checking power entering and leaving the fused disconnect - you need to shut power off, then check voltage line to line, then to ground. With the disconnect on, you are most likely back feeding from another hot line! Not recommend your way of checking power.
It is difficult when you arrive at a restaurant and work on a unit that you advised to replace several times. It can be maddening because the staff at the business just can't understand why a system can't be repaired. I have watched and paid attention to your channel for multiple years. Your presentation and knowledge are outstanding. Continued good luck for your business and channel.
You also have to be careful. It's getting hard to find a r22 system that has pure r22 in it. You might as well not even check the sub cooling or superheat. Around here companies are adding retrofits refrigerant to r22. I switched a customer to one of the retrofit refrigerants (I can't remember which one) and it worked well. The next year they let someone talk them into bringing out this high tech company with their certified techs who checked the system, couldn't get the "readings" to work out correctly and they condemned the compressor. The customer then called me, it was a couple of lbs low on the refrigerant. Worked perfectly after I added some and even found a Schrader valve leaking. Not only did it give the high tech company a black eye, I gained the people who originally recommended the other company. All over them using sub cooling and superheat to condemn the system.
I have to say.. it was at least 15 minutes in before he said the unit needs to be replaced. 99% of HVAC techs are saying it as their ladder is touching the roof!
I always checked motors for shorts to ground with an insulation tester as it was not unusual to find ones which looked fine on a low voltage continuity check but were grounded at 250 or 500V.
Had a power issue similar on a unit a couple weeks ago. Wouldnt get 3 phase power, but had power phase to ground. Come to find out one of my knives on B phase wasnt making good connection and was arcing.
14:34 all three line side wires look a bit overheated at the lug ends, with the middle one looking extra funky. testing to ground was playing games with you when the blower should have been running an no 24v. one of the phases was open and the back-feed made the meter read correct voltage on all three of the fuses(load side) to ground. the joys of electrical testing, test it multiple ways and repeatedly without touching anything else.
I first guessed contactor didn't connect when manually pushing, due to dirt/junk from factory/shipping/bad assembly. but you didn't re-test upstream power/contactor line side immediately. the age, amount of shmoo and two blown fuses made me suspicious of the disconnect right off the rip, plus the blown fuses looked freshly changed. then you showed new contactors. someone done been playing in there.
Well done Chris, slightly surprised you were slow on the disconnect but when you have power it's easy to move on. Often these issues only come apparent when under load . You removed gas which is fine, but why not reclaim and weigh in the correct amount. Then you KNOW it's correctly charged and not reliant on what the digital gauges estimate what it should be..
Always listen to the first impression. If u can switch this known load with adjustable rate, u will see or hear arcing at the bad connections. Because the arcing has lots RF power u can find it with any AM receever and u will hear it by the repeated pop or static noises at this adjusted/selected swichtng rate. This is easyli detectable by ear when the rate is changeing. In a high voltage DC fault finding this is realy nice trick. Sometimes it cant done at completly dark enviroment, because safety, and the low current surface ark is only visible in that way.
That EE again- the disconnect box and wires into the disconnect box (with peeling insulation/signs of over temp) and the spade crimps on the bottom of the contractors with a little black look suspect to me. If you’re part of the replacement team for this unit, might want to check the wires beforehand/recommend new wires be pulled from the main panel. Wouldn’t hurt to add a ground line, too- not that I know code for your area.
ALWAYS check leg to leg and leg to ground. Not doing this dam near killed me. Carrier only switches 2 legs of power to the compressor, even when they have a 3 pole contactor installed. Working on a large Bryant about the size of a minivan, wanting to leave compressor 1 running on a 100+ degree day, while I changed compressor 2. I disconnected control voltage to the contactor and checked leg to leg and got nothing. I should be good to go so I disconnected the terminals on the compressor the blue one touched the chassis a spark that was too fast to comprehend and the whole distribution center went dark. When i disconnected the compressor I still had 277 volts to ground on one leg of the compressor. Only Checking leg to ground could be dangerous as well if the unit wasn't properly grounded. It is very important to check leg to leg and leg to ground.
I always made sure that when I serviced units especially three phase disconnects that all the blades went in all the way to prevent poor connections causing heat and weak spring tension and blowing fuses burnt wires on contractors leave disconnect open turn it on and push each blade in they seem to get loose on the shaft in the disconnect disconnect after years of being turned off and on also when you turn disconnect off check the tightness on all lugs and grab each fuse and see if you can spin it in the fuse holder should be hard to spin if it's easy it will cause heat and eventually blowing fuses or burnt wires it's the simple easy things you check that prevent unnecessary failures call backs and unsatisfied customers
I bet the other company was throwing the 30/40A contactors in there because the leg dropped out after measuring for voltage. That arcing disconnect blade (intermittent leg availability) was surely the hidden underlying problem that manifested in indirect malfunctions. Nice job!
Those nutty calls like that are awesome to navigate and overcome, as long as you don’t have eight more calls to get to, then they are a major PITA stress . Good diagnostic,bro.
something i was told with electrical you should always check all legs of power due to an imbalance of power draw can cause issues or show more of what is happening.
I‘m sure you are aware if this, but you‘ll only reliably see voltage across a broken fuse if there is a load connected on the other side (like a winding or something) that closes the circuit back to the source. If the load-side if the fuse is floating (or if it is only connected to high impedance loads like vfds or smps‘) you might not see a voltage or it might not be what you expect.
Went to a call at a grinding place. A refer system having issues. Very dark gloomy place. Walking between the condenser unit and the wall. Looked down, boots were glowing orange. What the heck?!? The contactor's contacts, down by the floor, were glowing. Very similar to your disconnect except continual arcing for long enough to heat up red.
When customers wanna be cheap and not replace their things until they break. The problem with this line of thinking is what if it fails at the worst possible time like during let's say a pandemic or an economic crisis? If it does fail during times like these you'll wish you had just replaced it sooner. Being proactive instead of reactive is the way to go but most people are reactive.
I learned recently that while it doesn’t hurt the noalox isn’t necessary for modern cables and connectors. A newer alloy is used to prevent oxidation. I think at least the last 20 years.
fyi. Installing a antioxidant compound does not increase the connection ability. Anti oxidant compound is not even required to todays and even decades old aluminum alloy wire as it was redesigned in the 80s to be an alloy. I know you were trying to extend the lift of that old switch. If you look at any aluminum conductors today it will have the markings indicating AL 8000 not requiring anti oxidant compound. It may in your interest to study up on this topic and talk about it in one of your videos. I do not think you encounter aluminum wiring in your area but its a topic well worth talking about and educate others on. Thanks for such in depth videos and your willingness to go the extra mile when so many do not.
I work for a city facilities dept. All of our bldgs have very old units. All brands, all types. Up to 35 years old. Such a headache. No parts available.
The disconnect switch contactors to me appear "Pitted" meaning there is a lot of crap gummed up on the contactors where the fork meats between the contactor slots. I can see it in video on ( 13:48 ) they look smoked out on the ends, but also what about deep between them?. I used to replace condenser contactors on York or Lennox units back in 2009 at 16 years old due to the little pads inside the contactors were pitted causing stress on compressor making them sound funny. Electronic magnet in contactors would also wear out, you can take a volt meter to check voltage but that's never going to tell you if the contactor is going to close in contacting the circuit properly. Dirty disconnects can cause a lot of weird issues with condenser units making you think its one part gone bad but reality its al electrical issue with inconsistent and unstable voltage. Even though HVACR says the unit is not worth the investment on replacing parts, its old with R22, (Me remembering R34) I would say start with a new disconnect, because you can always have that to go with a full new unit if really need to be.
Apprentice here, curious why you mentioned there being a possible restriction in the system when seeing high subcooling and low superheat. If there was a restriction in the metering device wouldn’t your superheat and subcooling be high? Thanks!
Looks like other company prolly put 407c in it would make since with the head pressure, not sure of your return temp, I may have missed it, I did have a few 🍺 but always watching your vids 🍻
Your probably measuring back feed when your going to ground. Especially since carrier uses a 2 pole contactor on 3 phase units. The 115 from 1 phase can backfeed through the compressor or anything that uses that common 3rd leg. That's why you werent seeing 208 across those fuses since the 115 was backfeeding through the compressor from the same phase. always measure accross the phases. Going to ground only tells half the story.
Be careful with the old school, sure it had style but it also probably had lead pipes, asbestos, and burned down because it used aluminum wires which were not serviced
Dude I've seen it all.... I take care of 173 gas stations. I have fixed so many old units. My least favorite is working on rental properties. One time I told them 1800 to replace a reversing valve and new refrigerant. I told them it really needs replacement and gave them a price for replacement. I never got approval. 2 months later I'm at the same property with a no cooling call. They called someone else to replace the reversing valve. That someone used a hacksaw to remove the reversing valve and piped in a new one. SMH. Txv was stopped up with copper shavings. I picked up my tool turned on the disconnect then the compressor blew the terminals out. After telling the property manager you can probably guess what happened next... we didn't get the approval for repairs and a different company replaced the equipment. 😂😂
Do you have a thermal imaging camera? They are great for this type of failure where the bad connection creates a ton of heat right where it has a bad connection after it runs for a few minutes
![ILLSLICK - KILLSHOT REMIX [FULL VERSION]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/RIK8RrqIAzE/mqdefault.jpg)
This is a reference book quality video. Way to go man. Thorough without being dismissive. Tenacious on follow up confirmation. Brilliant demonstrations on failure mode and mitigation.
Not even ten seconds in and he's confused, oh gosh, buckle up haha
He didn’t push the contactor in properly. This cause the indecision about compressor 2.
We are still talking about refrigeration right?
What kind of contactors are you talking about pushing in?
No judgement…
@@keith_5584@7:37 and just about every video on this channel
@@williampatriot5622 😄
5 years ago. Remember that unit being surveyed for a Lennox replacement and Chris having to lift the unit with 2x4s and 4x4s to get the curb dimensions. Definitely been a while with that thing.
*Not to mention the unit around the corner with the 12x12 duct opening.
Loving the dedication even when polishing a turd. That’s how I like to work in the fire alarm field. Full send full dedication no matter the system.
ive replaced 2 outdoor disconnects this year due to burned out contacts. they had blown fuses. also, ive noticed the name plate on the units often have the lower amp reading than on the compressor. its very annoying. Love your channel. I'm learning so much. this is my first year in light commercial. it's kicking my ass but i love it! I want to be at your level . you are a real technician.
I do not understand why they always put these barely weatherproof disconnects up on the roof.
@@alouisschafer7212 I agree .makes no sense
Hoo-ee, I can smell that disconnect switch from this side of the screen. Whole thing's a stinker, but you made it so the customer has it back (for another month, week...)! 👏 👏
Sweet coppery smell.
Great video! 95% of what I work on is from the Regan administration and I know that "head scratching" feeling well. Great work. Thank you for your video.
I love when I open TH-cam and first thing I see is a new HVACR video. Honestly makes my week!
Lol, thanks bud
My very first thought at the beginning of the video was that Square D disconnect was at least 50% of the problem. The 3 phase wiring looked BAD‼️Bad terminals and connections = HEAT that makes for voltage drops and more heat. I’m surprised that disconnect didn’t take out a compressor and or blower motors. It’s SO frustrating when you’re having to deal with customers like that. Either spend the money or decide how to operate the business WITHOUT air conditioning!
EXCELLENT video and troubleshooting👍👍
You are real necromancer at HVACR.
great job!
Excellent work rewiring that old unit.
THERMAL IMAGING CAMERA WOULD'VE BEEN GREAT TO CHECK THAT DISCONNECT. NICE JOB CHRIS
Good call. Yeah, the wires looked suspect.
Yea but if the system is off there is no load, so nothing is hot.. Measuring definitely is the best way to find this fault.
2 fuses blown means a phase to phase overload or a single phase problem. One fuse blown phase to ground short. Seal tight requires a ground for 20 amps or more because the seal tight will not carry enough current to trip the OL.
Thought so
I came here for this comment. 👍🏼👍🏼
Damn that's amazing to know thank you
Good video buddy. You are absolutely right those crazy service calls are the best teachers sometimes. Keep the videos coming I have shown my apprentice your videos and I believe it’s helping so thanks buddy. Oh and your right it’s been a crazy summer
Thanks for watching, hope your apprentice is leveling up
Thermal camera on the knife blades would be interesting. Good diagnostic tool also.
Great video Chris! By the way you are an excellent technician. I like how you don't stop until you find the issue. Whoever is watching should take note. Great stuff!
Thanks for the nice words!
I’d kill to learn from ya and I learn from every video you produce. Thank you sir.
Its cool to see you proving the disco was off and the fuses were working, i hope I would do the same
You would, probably
Old shop i worked in used 12/2 house wire as 3 phase and metal conduit for ground. The ground in the 12 2 was the 3rd phase. The conduit would glow in some areas.
I replaced that same exact disconnect on a Lennox when I helped out at our Phoenix branch back in June. The L1 connection at the top was completely burnt up and disintegrated and no longer making contact, while that plastic cover was completely melted and warped.
Yeah that heat wave was Brutal. I was in Colton maybe the day before you made this video, it got up to 122° on that roof that day.
Yeah this heat has been brutal, stay safe out there bud
Awesome video Chris! I always like to see your process of diagnosing the problem and fixing it after. Keep up the good work! 👍🏻
Always enjoy watching your videos they’ve taught me so much.
Thanks bud
Estupendo trabajo el realizado Crhis, y muy gentil de tu parte para que tu cliente tenga la oportunidad de realizar el cambio de ése equipo. Sabios consejos los de hoy.
Saludos desde Coacalco Edo de México.
Don't measure 3 phase voltage to ground, always measure across two phases. You can still measure 115v to ground on all 3 phases with a phase missing because you're measuring another phase through the load.
Unless it’s a carrier which backfeeds one hot leg to fake you out! Lol
I work in industrial electrical and until a 35 years in industrial maintenance : a month ago I have never seen an arcing disconnect before either. Mine was 480 V and it was really bad and yes, it overheated and blew the fuse because of the heat from the arc
Gotta love electrical Gremlins Chris good job as always retired HVAC in southeast missouri
Thanks bud
I love the cool logos on those old 90s and early 2000s Copeland scrolls. Everything is so boring now
Lol, your not wrong
The 480 is awesome, i cant find it in the local supply houses anymore. They are still on the 440, sometimes theyll have a 460.
20+ years out of that unit
They definately got their moneys worth out of it
The shareholders of the private equity company that owns the restaurant chain would probably disagree.
@@chrislawson1233no kidding. Why is the unit trash. Change the disconnect.
@@PantherSerpahin "They don't make 'em like that anymore."
keep in mind on your RLA tests that the current will be higher with the voltage drop, being its under 200V loaded.
Turn off the main breaker that feeds the disconnect. Shine up the blades and the pinch contacts with some emery paper, squeeze the contacts together to tighten them up.
Good as new.
Weather, dust, dirt and oxidation can cause intermittent contact in a disconnect over time. It's not a weather tight disconnect so dirt is going to get in there.
One can install a new one, but it really isn't necessary.
Great job Chris has always.
Thanks bud
I think you should make a video on how you do a proper preventative maintenance on a restaurant
Great video. Thank you for sharing. Have a nice weekend
Thanks bud, you to
25:33 they had spring steel clips that squeezed in and held tension on them, the spring steel rusted/broke and is long gone. same thing happens to circuit breakers where they push on to the bus bar lug. it's likely plated copper terminals, the heat cycling after tension loss has softened it further. typical of what I see on everything electrical that has or had "spring tension" connections.
which is why I'm waiting for the push on/lever wire splice failures to start showing up. 😒
I should see my high point in ignition refrigeration My very first job that I ever have in my life was auto electrical and this help me build my electrical skills in engineering and I was grateful for having that first job I hated it but it did help me for the rest of my life
I suspect this is one of those situations where a replacement unit would trigger certain rules and require a bunch of other expensive stuff to be done to remain compliant with code and be legal.
Measuring to ground on a 3 fase system when there is a load can get confusing. You might see 120V on a fase while its not getting voltage from the disconnect, it could be that you are measuring feedback from the primary coil of the low voltage transformer. With those issues I would make sure there is no load or only measure fase to fase.
Phase bro, phase.
@@KevinfinityDrums Sorry, fase is how we say it in the Netherlands. Thanks for correcting! Typing English as a second language is one thing but technical English is even harder😁
Checking power entering and leaving the fused disconnect - you need to shut power off, then check voltage line to line, then to ground. With the disconnect on, you are most likely back feeding from another hot line! Not recommend your way of checking power.
It is difficult when you arrive at a restaurant and work on a unit that you advised to replace several times. It can be maddening because the staff at the business just can't understand why a system can't be repaired. I have watched and paid attention to your channel for multiple years. Your presentation and knowledge are outstanding. Continued good luck for your business and channel.
You also have to be careful. It's getting hard to find a r22 system that has pure r22 in it. You might as well not even check the sub cooling or superheat. Around here companies are adding retrofits refrigerant to r22. I switched a customer to one of the retrofit refrigerants (I can't remember which one) and it worked well. The next year they let someone talk them into bringing out this high tech company with their certified techs who checked the system, couldn't get the "readings" to work out correctly and they condemned the compressor. The customer then called me, it was a couple of lbs low on the refrigerant. Worked perfectly after I added some and even found a Schrader valve leaking. Not only did it give the high tech company a black eye, I gained the people who originally recommended the other company. All over them using sub cooling and superheat to condemn the system.
Thanks bud
And you never know what previous company’s did. We need logs lol
Yes we do
I have to say.. it was at least 15 minutes in before he said the unit needs to be replaced. 99% of HVAC techs are saying it as their ladder is touching the roof!
just woke up now I'm watching a hvacr video
Thanks for watching
Great! Thanks ❤
I always checked motors for shorts to ground with an insulation tester as it was not unusual to find ones which looked fine on a low voltage continuity check but were grounded at 250 or 500V.
Great work man
Good job
I was a mechanic
I enjoyed working on cars without computers
Good job Chris.......
Thanks bud
Had a power issue similar on a unit a couple weeks ago. Wouldnt get 3 phase power, but had power phase to ground. Come to find out one of my knives on B phase wasnt making good connection and was arcing.
At least you can re-use the 3Ø disconnect when you change out the RTU in 10 years.
Lol
14:34 all three line side wires look a bit overheated at the lug ends, with the middle one looking extra funky.
testing to ground was playing games with you when the blower should have been running an no 24v. one of the phases was open and the back-feed made the meter read correct voltage on all three of the fuses(load side) to ground. the joys of electrical testing, test it multiple ways and repeatedly without touching anything else.
I first guessed contactor didn't connect when manually pushing, due to dirt/junk from factory/shipping/bad assembly. but you didn't re-test upstream power/contactor line side immediately.
the age, amount of shmoo and two blown fuses made me suspicious of the disconnect right off the rip, plus the blown fuses looked freshly changed. then you showed new contactors. someone done been playing in there.
Well done Chris, slightly surprised you were slow on the disconnect but when you have power it's easy to move on. Often these issues only come apparent when under load .
You removed gas which is fine, but why not reclaim and weigh in the correct amount. Then you KNOW it's correctly charged and not reliant on what the digital gauges estimate what it should be..
Thanks for your question, I will try to discuss this further on my next live stream, Monday afternoons depending on work and emergencies and what not
Always listen to the first impression.
If u can switch this known load with adjustable rate, u will see or hear arcing at the bad connections.
Because the arcing has lots RF power u can find it with any AM receever and u will hear it by the repeated pop or static noises at this adjusted/selected swichtng rate.
This is easyli detectable by ear when the rate is changeing.
In a high voltage DC fault finding this is realy nice trick. Sometimes it cant done at completly dark enviroment, because safety, and the low current surface ark is only visible in that way.
Im glad they left you enough compressor wire in case you wanted to put them on the building nextdoor
Lol
Great job and video
That EE again- the disconnect box and wires into the disconnect box (with peeling insulation/signs of over temp) and the spade crimps on the bottom of the contractors with a little black look suspect to me.
If you’re part of the replacement team for this unit, might want to check the wires beforehand/recommend new wires be pulled from the main panel. Wouldn’t hurt to add a ground line, too- not that I know code for your area.
ALWAYS check leg to leg and leg to ground. Not doing this dam near killed me. Carrier only switches 2 legs of power to the compressor, even when they have a 3 pole contactor installed. Working on a large Bryant about the size of a minivan, wanting to leave compressor 1 running on a 100+ degree day, while I changed compressor 2. I disconnected control voltage to the contactor and checked leg to leg and got nothing. I should be good to go so I disconnected the terminals on the compressor the blue one touched the chassis a spark that was too fast to comprehend and the whole distribution center went dark. When i disconnected the compressor I still had 277 volts to ground on one leg of the compressor. Only Checking leg to ground could be dangerous as well if the unit wasn't properly grounded. It is very important to check leg to leg and leg to ground.
Very good point, stay safe out there
I always made sure that when I serviced units especially three phase disconnects that all the blades went in all the way to prevent poor connections causing heat and weak spring tension and blowing fuses burnt wires on contractors leave disconnect open turn it on and push each blade in they seem to get loose on the shaft in the disconnect disconnect after years of being turned off and on also when you turn disconnect off check the tightness on all lugs and grab each fuse and see if you can spin it in the fuse holder should be hard to spin if it's easy it will cause heat and eventually blowing fuses or burnt wires it's the simple easy things you check that prevent unnecessary failures call backs and unsatisfied customers
Chris, As i said during your live stream quit hot wiring the damn disconnects lol. Just teasing you my friend.
I bet the other company was throwing the 30/40A contactors in there because the leg dropped out after measuring for voltage. That arcing disconnect blade (intermittent leg availability) was surely the hidden underlying problem that manifested in indirect malfunctions. Nice job!
Thanks bud
Diagnostics should follow the flow of electricity.
Some of these old units last better than the newer stuff out there the old saying they don't build them like they used to
I tend to see a lot of older equipment lately. I also hear a lot of just get me by this year. Tough out there
Those nutty calls like that are awesome to navigate and overcome, as long as you don’t have eight more calls to get to, then they are a major PITA stress . Good diagnostic,bro.
Thanks bud
The disconnect was bad. Anytime your fuses are discolored. You probably got a bad disconnect.
something i was told with electrical you should always check all legs of power due to an imbalance of power draw can cause issues or show more of what is happening.
Good point, thanks
With the terminals try some thin card (greeting card thickness) soaked in contact cleaner between the closed contacts? (Power disconnected of course)
Nice work
We have a 25 year old unit still kicking only ever had a capacitor fan motor go.
I‘m sure you are aware if this, but you‘ll only reliably see voltage across a broken fuse if there is a load connected on the other side (like a winding or something) that closes the circuit back to the source. If the load-side if the fuse is floating (or if it is only connected to high impedance loads like vfds or smps‘) you might not see a voltage or it might not be what you expect.
Went to a call at a grinding place. A refer system having issues. Very dark gloomy place. Walking between the condenser unit and the wall. Looked down, boots were glowing orange. What the heck?!? The contactor's contacts, down by the floor, were glowing. Very similar to your disconnect except continual arcing for long enough to heat up red.
Hi, for your safety, please, use a Two-pole Voltage Testers.
When customers wanna be cheap and not replace their things until they break. The problem with this line of thinking is what if it fails at the worst possible time like during let's say a pandemic or an economic crisis? If it does fail during times like these you'll wish you had just replaced it sooner. Being proactive instead of reactive is the way to go but most people are reactive.
I love the ones that make you scratch your head
I learned recently that while it doesn’t hurt the noalox isn’t necessary for modern cables and connectors. A newer alloy is used to prevent oxidation. I think at least the last 20 years.
Thanks for the tip
@@HVACRVIDEOS although if in damp areas, its probably still a good idea!
fyi. Installing a antioxidant compound does not increase the connection ability. Anti oxidant compound is not even required to todays and even decades old aluminum alloy wire as it was redesigned in the 80s to be an alloy. I know you were trying to extend the lift of that old switch. If you look at any aluminum conductors today it will have the markings indicating AL 8000 not requiring anti oxidant compound. It may in your interest to study up on this topic and talk about it in one of your videos. I do not think you encounter aluminum wiring in your area but its a topic well worth talking about and educate others on. Thanks for such in depth videos and your willingness to go the extra mile when so many do not.
Thanks for the feedback
good video dude!
That gap is pretty wide on the middle blade of that disconnect.
Great video
I work for a city facilities dept. All of our bldgs have very old units. All brands, all types. Up to 35 years old. Such a headache. No parts available.
Gotta dump em then.
And get something in that's reliable and lasts, id make that the #1 priority for selecting the manufacturer.
The disconnect switch contactors to me appear "Pitted" meaning there is a lot of crap gummed up on the contactors where the fork meats between the contactor slots. I can see it in video on ( 13:48 ) they look smoked out on the ends, but also what about deep between them?.
I used to replace condenser contactors on York or Lennox units back in 2009 at 16 years old due to the little pads inside the contactors were pitted causing stress on compressor making them sound funny.
Electronic magnet in contactors would also wear out, you can take a volt meter to check voltage but that's never going to tell you if the contactor is going to close in contacting the circuit properly.
Dirty disconnects can cause a lot of weird issues with condenser units making you think its one part gone bad but reality its al electrical issue with inconsistent and unstable voltage.
Even though HVACR says the unit is not worth the investment on replacing parts, its old with R22, (Me remembering R34) I would say start with a new disconnect, because you can always have that to go with a full new unit if really need to be.
They called someone else
and you see what that got them cheaper work got them a double bill
Head scratchers are good every now and then they keep you on your toes 😊
"Throw parts at it" is the first resort of the lazy or inept.
Apprentice here, curious why you mentioned there being a possible restriction in the system when seeing high subcooling and low superheat. If there was a restriction in the metering device wouldn’t your superheat and subcooling be high? Thanks!
The disconnect first , turn off the bracker. And cut back the wire and just clean it all
ahh yes i also have an insulated sparky sparky disconnect sacrificial flat head lol
Looks like other company prolly put 407c in it would make since with the head pressure, not sure of your return temp, I may have missed it, I did have a few 🍺 but always watching your vids 🍻
Those elary 00 “glacier scroll” compressors are tanks.
Grab up one of those thermal cameras that plug into your phone.
We call it FM in electronics..Now you see me, now you don't....fKN MAGIC...:)
When u have these type of problem ing with disc
Your probably measuring back feed when your going to ground. Especially since carrier uses a 2 pole contactor on 3 phase units. The 115 from 1 phase can backfeed through the compressor or anything that uses that common 3rd leg. That's why you werent seeing 208 across those fuses since the 115 was backfeeding through the compressor from the same phase. always measure accross the phases. Going to ground only tells half the story.
In addition to the disco being faulty of course.
The other company doesn't know how to provide options....
Stock options?
@@user-ln7of9gs4s yep
I have NEVER seen an old capacitor read its rated uf like that with clean 0’s lol.
Lol, it's rare
Be careful with the old school, sure it had style but it also probably had lead pipes, asbestos, and burned down because it used aluminum wires which were not serviced
I appreciate the tip
Dude I've seen it all.... I take care of 173 gas stations. I have fixed so many old units. My least favorite is working on rental properties. One time I told them 1800 to replace a reversing valve and new refrigerant. I told them it really needs replacement and gave them a price for replacement. I never got approval. 2 months later I'm at the same property with a no cooling call. They called someone else to replace the reversing valve. That someone used a hacksaw to remove the reversing valve and piped in a new one. SMH. Txv was stopped up with copper shavings. I picked up my tool turned on the disconnect then the compressor blew the terminals out. After telling the property manager you can probably guess what happened next... we didn't get the approval for repairs and a different company replaced the equipment. 😂😂
They. Will. Never. Learn.
But I like that there are so many awful techs out there messing shit up.
Gives us all job security.
Do you have a thermal imaging camera? They are great for this type of failure where the bad connection creates a ton of heat right where it has a bad connection after it runs for a few minutes
With no ground coming from the panel where are you getting the ground from? From the conduit and flex?