My heat pump has been working fine since this past winter when I had the air handler replaced. Over the last couple of days the circuit breaker going to the unit in the box outside my house has been tripping at random times. Sometimes the unit will run for 30 minutes and then trip, sometimes it does it right away. The weird thing is that in my breaker panel outside there are separate breakers, one labeled "A/C" and another labeled "Heat". I'm using the A/C, but it's the breaker labeled Heat that's tripping. I'm considering changing the "Heat" breaker itself. Just wondering if a bad breaker is a possibility or am I way off base? My next question would be how dangerous is it to change out a breaker? I pretty uncomfortable around electricity. Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks.
Thanks, but money is tight and I have to avoid paying someone to come out if I can. I appreciate the reccomendation, but right now I want to see if there is anything I can check (or do) on my own first without frying the house or myself . Thanks again.
Very well could be the breaker itself. The air handler also has heat strips in it which may be the reason they labled it as "Heat". Although it could be a number of other issues, I would start with the breaker, 'specially since it just started happening recently (with storms and such). Unfortunatley, even though those breakers are real cheap, workin around electricity is dangerous and I would suggest getting someone qualified to deal with it. Just my opinion.
Ain't either Hotwire or Daredevil in the HVAC field? I bet they could give some helpful advice. Caint remember which one it is though. PM 'em both!
Thanks Rich. A guy at Lowes told me that it's safe to change out a breaker because once you pull them out there is no power to them. That way you can safely pull off the wire and change it out. That doesn't sound right to me at all, but then again I'm a total novice. I think I'll take your advice. Thanks!
I can understand that! However, I do know once in a while, he will walk someone through something simple over the phone. Ya never know. He's a super nice fella!
I was stayin at a feller's house in California (and I do not suggest ANY rednecks spend more than a day out there) and his air handler breaker tripped. I went outside to reset it and sparks flew out of it which scared me worser than seein Oprah walkin into a lingerie store! Looked like the Cleveland 4th of July fireworks (complete with the screaming rednecks). Repair man charged him $200 to change out a $15 breaker but my buddy said California money is different than the rest of the country whatever that means.
Has it only happened when it rains? Could be that the water is causing a short in the outside unit. Maybe a mouse chewed thru a wire or something just got aged and loose. That's what was going on last time my heat pump was tripping the breaker outside....
... or it could be that they never replaced the breaker when they changed the air handler and the old breaker aint suitable for the new air handler, especially in cooling mode? Might could check into this and get a replacement under warranty from the installer.
You know, come to think of it the problem did start shortly after we had that bad storm. The tripping of the breaker has happened rain or shine, but it never happened before that patch of tornados. Great catch dangerboy. When that happened to you did you have someone come out and fix it or did you DIY? Thanks
I would replace the breaker as a last resort. In fact, the breaker is doing it's job by tripping at excessive current levels. If you replace the breaker or, god forbid, up the current rating, you will likely mask the real problem. I would inspect the circuit for low resistance (short) conditions ie burnt cables, discolored components, paths to ground.... Do what you want, but I'm allergic to smoke, flames, and high voltage. There are times when it's better to pay professionals than to risk lives.
That is absolutely true, and I won't fool around with anything electrical. After getting the great advice here it sounds like I will have to call a professional. Could you explain to me what you mean by paths to ground? I saw that term on a DIY site I looked at. Just wondering. Thanks.
LOL at Rich. DS2 spent a couple months out there in Southern CA and said about the same thing. He won't go back...lol
Electricity is naturally inclined to seek the path of least resistance to ground. In a normal circuit, the path is prescribed and the components in the circuit are chosen to operate in a predictable manner. When components age or experience current surge conditions, the properties of insulators, resistors, and conductors can change and provide a path to ground with lower resistance and thus higher current. The usual suspects are cables, resistors, coils, and transformers. Some might use the term " short", but I reserve that description for zero resistance path between hot and ground. Shorts= sparks&fire. Low resistance= heat and smoke That being said, I am out of work and understand the part about money being tight. I've managed to pull off cheap and heroic handi-man stunts using you tube. Type in your system name and blown breakers. You never know what you might find.
If it happensd within a couple of days of rain there could easily still be some water in the unit. That's what was throwing us off. Actually a buddy took a look at it for me and all it needed was some electrical tape. Just take the top off the unit and have a look.
Here are a few suggestions: First, you need to identify which breaker controls which piece of equipment. Most electricians don't understand that you have a Heat Pump/Outdoor Condenser and an Air Handler/Furnace/Indoor Unit so they label one Heat and one A/C, when in fact they both provide heat and a/c when used together. To identify which one is actually tripping, turn them both on and find out which one turns off when you flip the tripping breaker or when the breaker trips which piece of equipment turns off (indoor or outdoor). Second, once you find out which unit is tripping, go to that piece of equipment and look on the outside of the main door (if it's the air handler under the house) or a side panel (if it's the outdoor unit). If it's the indoor unit/air handler: On a sticker for the indoor unit you should see a label that has a bunch of different heat kit installation combination's with a mark beside the size of heat kit installed in your air handler. Follow that line over and it should give you a Minimum Circuit Branch ampacity and a Maximum Overcurrent Protection ampacity. The breaker installed in your box that is tripping should be between those two ratings or generally it is the maximum size. In other words, if the minimum is 47 and the maximum is 60, their probably should be a 60 installed in your box. If it's the outdoor unit/heat pump: On the sticker on the side panel you will see the same numbers, but this time there is no marking on a certain selection, there will be only two specific numbers listed for the minimum and maximum. Make sure the breaker falls in the same range as described above. If all is well with the electrical, you probably have an issue with the piece of equipment. Not to scare you, but if that's the case, it's probably not something you will easily pin point and you should call an experienced professional. Make sure you call around for HVAC service right now instead of taking the first posted here. It seems KDC watches this board so often that when she see's HVAC she has a macro that automatically posts Arctic Air's number. Either way, make sure you get referrals from people you know. Good luck!
Wow, thanks for the great advice Hotwire. The thing with the two breakers for air handler and heat pump makes total sense now. I will definately check it out tommorow, and probably be back with a few more questions. :lol: Thanks everyone!
HVAC Breakers rarely go bad & when they do, u can usually hear them sizzling, see the burn marks, or it will feel gritty when u wiggle it with your finger. Based on the limited info given, my guess is the fan relay board.
Good catch! If they replaced the air handler they may have not change the breaker to the Amp's required on the new unit.
