Compressor fails yearly

[pretzelb]

I've had my house for 4 years now (it's 9 years old) and every year I extend my home warranty because I can't trust the a/c. Every year the compressor (the outdoor piece of the unit - or is that the condensor?) fails in some way. The first year it was just making a very loud noise when it shut down so the repair guy replaced it, but kept the rest of the unit. The second year it never worked very well but no replacements. The third year it just plain died. The replaced the entire outside piece. Now I can hear the coils or threads in the compressor as they spin down - they screech with a very loud and horrible noise. The unit still works but it's starting to make louder noises when starting up and I'm predicting it fails again.

At one time I had a guy tell me that my returns weren't big enough for my unit (I think it's 4 or 5 ton for a 2100 sq ft single story). I have a 14x14 and 20x25 return. No work has been done to the unit in the attic at any time (yet). I have neighbors with units about 1/3 of the size of mine and houses about 300 sq feet smaller that appear to have better luck than me so maybe there is something to that.

Anyone have any suggestions? I feel like I'm trapped with this home warranty thing. As long as I have the warranty I can't control the repair service and it seems like I can't get complete service. For example, I probably get the same company that installed my new outdoor unit last year. If I drop the policy I'm afraid it could cost me an entire new unit the next failure.

[imeduc]

Need a lot more here to say duct work is bad. You have to see a job or see the print on it. You dont say where you are. 4 or 5 ton for a home 2100sq ft is over size I think . But would have to run a AC load on the home. Now the cold air grills dont mean a lot. Its all in the size of the duct work that counts. You need 70to80 sq inch per ton of ac at the start of the trunk line and the same for the return. For a good job.

Now dont know what you have on paper there. But a new unit out side only should be the compressor and a warranty for 5 years.

Id say get another hvac company to work on it.I dont think they did a good clean up job when they put the new units in. Also do you change the air filter every 30 to 90 days. Most ac units are good for about 15 years is all. I do have some that are way older though

ED

My mistakes dont define me they inform me.

[pretzelb]

Thanks for the reply. I guess it's hard to help when I haven't provided good information. I will say that I'm in the Dallas Texas area so the a/c runs 24/7 during the long spring to summer season. I do try to change the filters every 30 days but it is probably more like 60 days.

The compressor actually woke me up twice last night. The noise the screw makes as it stops revolving is getting to be a very loud and annoying high pitched screech. It's almost comical because it happens after the fan has shut off so everything else is nice an quiet. I guess the compressor screws take about 45 seconds to stop spinning.

Regarding the duct work I think it's going to be hard for me to get some help. It seems like the companies have a repair crew and an sales crew. The sales crew seem to have the knowledge on how much return is needed for the unit. The repair crew either doesn't have this knowledge or is tasked with just repairing existing equipment - for example they don't appear to investigate whether or not the builder screwed up when they put in the returns. To figure out if the duct work is insufficent or the unit too large I think I'd need a sales crew at the house and they would only be interested if I was going to buy a new system. I can't say I blame them but I may be stuck in a no win situation because of a decision made when the house was built.

I really think the new outside unit (specifically the compressor) was defective from day one. At the very least it must be out of balance to make the screeching noise. I guess I need to try and get them to fix it but the warranty won't pay for disposal charges on the compressor which is around $100. Hopefully it will be covered by some kind of warranty and I will only have to pay a service fee of $35.

It just bugs me that this may end up happening every year or two. I would have hoped that the warranty company would get tired of paying for this and get some kind of expert to my house but I guess that's a foolish thought.

Sorry for the long response - just frustrated.

[imeduc]

Dont know your set up there .But I think Id call in another Hvac tech to go over it for sure. It could be they didnt clean up the inside of the unit when they put the new compressor in and this is getting to the new units.



ED

My mistakes dont define me they inform me.

[pretzelb]

Turns out it's a 5 ton unit from Payne (pa10ja060). It could be that this unit is very oversized for my 2150 sqft house, even with my vaulted celings.

I think I have two issues that should be split into separate questions. I wrote this post when I was frustrated and it kind of rambles. I will create a more focused post.

Thanks.

[irregularjoe]

First off, as a working contractor, I'd say to stay away from home warranties. Your $35 service call is going to get you exactly that. $35 worth of service. It's a scam, much like the undercoating that a car salesman wants to sell you.
Your problem sounds more like an bad condensor fan than a compressor.
As mentioned ealier, save your $35 and call in a real AC repair tech. Try to get them there while the unit is screeching.
Good luck.
Joe

quote:Originally posted by pretzelb

Turns out it's a 5 ton unit from Payne (pa10ja060). It could be that this unit is very oversized for my 2150 sqft house, even with my vaulted celings.

I think I have two issues that should be split into separate questions. I wrote this post when I was frustrated and it kind of rambles. I will create a more focused post.

Thanks.

Did you ever see OHM'S mother in LAW?...... SHOCKING!