A/C Unit tripping breaker

[jtr8178]

My A/C unit will run for anywhere from 30 seconds to 3 minutes, and then it trips the breaker. I've left the breaker off and tried every switch, appliance, and outlet in the house, but it appears the a/c unit is the only item on it.

Any ideas on where I should start my investigation? I'm thinking if I had a dead short in the line somewhere that it would trip the breaker right away? I'm thinking that it may be a weak breaker in the box itself?

I just moved into this house 2 months ago, and everything worked great up until today. I've done some basic electrical around the house -- changing outlets, switches, installing new lights, etc..., but nothing in the box itself.

Thanks in advance!

[HayZee518]

first thing to look for - does the evaporator fan run? If it does can you hear the compressor motor try to run? Is there a clicking noise from inside of the compressor before the breaker trips? A dead short would trip the breaker as soon as you switch from reset to full ON. Is the a/c outlet on a dedicated circuit? Answer these questions and we'll go from there.

[jtr8178]

I ended up going outside and looking over the unit very well. It appears that the previous owner had done some very poor electrical repairs ... They spliced a wire outside, and then wrapped it in duct tape. Moisture made its way into the duct tape, which then caused corrosion, which caused my probem.

Thanks for the help!