gee, I'm so glad I used my home warranty

[gorcorps]

I bought a new house recently and the AC hasn't been cooling very well since it's been getting warmer. The coils aren't iced over or dirty, but the compressor is louder than I would expect so I was hoping to get it fixed or replaced. Given that such a thing would be expensive I decided to make use of the home warranty that came with the house. They assigned me some local A/C guy that I couldn't find any reputable reviews for (great) but he still probably knows more than I do about it.

I knew going in that I still had to pay a $75 service fee, and they only covered $10/lb of refrigerant (going rate is $45/lb). Given what I thought was wrong though, I figured it'd be well worth it to get the compressor fixed.

Well today was the service day. As expected he casually brushed off my concerns about the compressor noise as I didn't know what I was talking about (a good assumption, but I wish he would have least tried to listen). Anyway, the diagnosis was one of the capacitors seemed pretty weak. Great! That's something I wasn't able to check before as I had no multimeter and no knowledge of the caps. I figured he was going to change it, but nope... he just installed a hot start kit which from what I see would have cost me around $30-40 and is easy to install yourself. He also "topped off" the refrigerant as it was a pound low

So I spent $75 + $35 for something I probably could have fixed myself for $40. And I haven't even been back home with it running to know if it's helped, so I still have a feeling I'll be paying another $75 to fix it properly. It's probably my own fault for thinking I wouldn't get screwed during their busy season, but it still pisses me off.

 

[cbrsurfr]

You got off easy. I'm fighting $630+ in charges for having someone out 3 times to fix the AC in my rental house.

 

[SunnyD]

Home warranties are pretty much a scam. Mine was essentially useless, once you actually read what it covered (hint: it pretty much fine print covers nothing).

 

[disappoint]

Well today was the service day. As expected he casually brushed off my concerns about the compressor noise as I didn't know what I was talking about (a good assumption, but I wish he would have least tried to listen). Anyway, the diagnosis was one of the capacitors seemed pretty weak. Great! That's something I wasn't able to check before as I had no multimeter and no knowledge of the caps. I figured he was going to change it, but nope... he just installed a hot start kit which from what I see would have cost me around $30-40 and is easy to install yourself. He also "topped off" the refrigerant as it was a pound low

Hard start kit. You probably misheard him and thought he said hot.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZea1wC-cHU

You should get a multimeter. They are very useful. Even the cheapies today have capacitance testing ability.

If he didn't replace the run capacitor maybe you should do that as well.

 

[Insomniator]

What a super weak story... you got shafted out of 70 bucks but not even that really since you had a professional come fix the actual issue for you.

 

[sunzt]

wtf is a "weak" capacitor?

 

[Markbnj]

Home warranties are pretty much a scam. Mine was essentially useless, once you actually read what it covered (hint: it pretty much fine print covers nothing).

This.

 

[gorcorps]

Home warranties are pretty much a scam. Mine was essentially useless, once you actually read what it covered (hint: it pretty much fine print covers nothing).

I'm beginning to think so too, even though quite a number of my friends told me to make sure the seller included one. They made good use out of theirs after a hot water heater replacement. Obviously YMMV

Hard start kit. You probably misheard him and thought he said hot.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZea1wC-cHU

You should get a multimeter. They are very useful. Even the cheapies today have capacitance testing ability.

If he didn't replace the run capacitor maybe you should do that as well.

Yeah I misheard and couldn't read his hand writing. I had a multimeter but it was an older one and eventually broke. I didn't have much reason to replace it in the apartment. There's actually a lot of tools that I need to buy. This will be the first Christmas in years where I'll actually have stuff to ask for

What a super weak story... you got shafted out of 70 bucks but not even that really since you had a professional come fix the actual issue for you.

LOL

Made you look...

 

[sixone]

If he didn't replace the run capacitor maybe you should do that as well.

How difficult is this, for a newb?

I've got a fan that won't come on, and I'd like to fix it on the cheap.

 

[halik]

I bought a new house recently and the AC hasn't been cooling very well since it's been getting warmer. The coils aren't iced over or dirty, but the compressor is louder than I would expect so I was hoping to get it fixed or replaced. Given that such a thing would be expensive I decided to make use of the home warranty that came with the house. They assigned me some local A/C guy that I couldn't find any reputable reviews for (great) but he still probably knows more than I do about it.

I knew going in that I still had to pay a $75 service fee, and they only covered $10/lb of refrigerant (going rate is $45/lb). Given what I thought was wrong though, I figured it'd be well worth it to get the compressor fixed.

Well today was the service day. As expected he casually brushed off my concerns about the compressor noise as I didn't know what I was talking about (a good assumption, but I wish he would have least tried to listen). Anyway, the diagnosis was one of the capacitors seemed pretty weak. Great! That's something I wasn't able to check before as I had no multimeter and no knowledge of the caps. I figured he was going to change it, but nope... he just installed a hot start kit which from what I see would have cost me around $30-40 and is easy to install yourself. He also "topped off" the refrigerant as it was a pound low

So I spent $75 + $35 for something I probably could have fixed myself for $40. And I haven't even been back home with it running to know if it's helped, so I still have a feeling I'll be paying another $75 to fix it properly. It's probably my own fault for thinking I wouldn't get screwed during their busy season, but it still pisses me off.

Ha, call the company and tell them to fix it right. There's no such thing as "topping off" the refrigerant.

Also did the guy bring a batter or some sort of source of electricity to check the capacitors? Presumably a regular multimeter can't supply enough current to test the caps properly.

 

[gorcorps]

Ha, call the company and tell them to fix it right. There's no such thing as "topping off" the refrigerant.

Also did the guy bring a batter or some sort of source of electricity to check the capacitors? Presumably a regular multimeter can't supply enough current to test the caps properly.

It was my understanding that many modern multimeters have their own battery source sufficient for measuring such a thing now. I'm not sure though.

Also, I didn't read the business card closely but I'm pretty sure the guy who came out was the "owner". This "company" seems to just be a dude with a truck and license to buy the chemicals. I'm not sure how he got in the vendor database for the home warranty stuff.

 

[Vdubchaos]

Central ACs just don't make any sense to me. So expensive to purchase, very little savings (at least here in Northeast, we only get 2-3 months of hot weather) and when they break........ohh boy.

I will stick to my $100 window units.....

 

[slag]

Ha, call the company and tell them to fix it right. There's no such thing as "topping off" the refrigerant.

Also did the guy bring a batter or some sort of source of electricity to check the capacitors? Presumably a regular multimeter can't supply enough current to test the caps properly.

Sure there is. I've done it before numerous times. You don't need to fully evacuate a system to add more refrigerant if it just has low pressure. Sure, the refrigerant has gone somewhere, but by "topping off" the refrigerant, you can get the cooling back up to where it needs to be. My sister has a system that every 4 years needs topped off. It's not worth it for her to get it fixed properly as it is probably in the coil, but we just go out there and top it off and she is good for another few years.

Usually, not always, but usually your run/start cap will bulge when its bad. They are cheap enough to swap one in and see if it fixes the problem as well.

 

[sunzt]

Sure there is. I've done it before numerous times. You don't need to fully evacuate a system to add more refrigerant if it just has low pressure. Sure, the refrigerant has gone somewhere, but by "topping off" the refrigerant, you can get the cooling back up to where it needs to be. My sister has a system that every 4 years needs topped off. It's not worth it for her to get it fixed properly as it is probably in the coil, but we just go out there and top it off and she is good for another few years.

Usually, not always, but usually your run/start cap will bulge when its bad. They are cheap enough to swap one in and see if it fixes the problem as well.

So how do you do this topping off? Any guides?

 

[Aharami]

Central ACs just don't make any sense to me. So expensive to purchase, very little savings (at least here in Northeast, we only get 2-3 months of hot weather) and when they break........ohh boy.

I will stick to my $100 window units.....

is there anything you don't complain about, and pretend you don't have a better solution for?

 

[gorcorps]

Central ACs just don't make any sense to me. So expensive to purchase, very little savings (at least here in Northeast, we only get 2-3 months of hot weather) and when they break........ohh boy.

I will stick to my $100 window units.....

Eh, it's nice to have options. For a lot of people the A/C is already part of the house they're buying (like me) so there's no real added up front cost as it's been so diluted by the rest of the house value. The only problems come from repairs like this one, which may have only cost me the same as one window unit.

Plus I like being able to see out of the only window in my bedroom

 

[Pantoot]

How difficult is this, for a newb?

I've got a fan that won't come on, and I'd like to fix it on the cheap.

YMMV, but the three I have done were all very simple. Disconnect the breaker, open the unit, undo the strap, unplug the wires, plug the new one in and reverse.

Maybe take a picture before you undo the wiring just to make sure you get it right when you reassemble. You might have to get a new strap or something to hold the new one in if it is a little differently sized, I had to do that once.

Edit: Disappoint is right, just because it is easy doesn't mean it is safe or even the right thing to do. Please don't kill yourself.

 

[disappoint]

How difficult is this, for a newb?

I've got a fan that won't come on, and I'd like to fix it on the cheap.

I don't recommend doing this if you have no idea what you are doing. Let's put it this way, if you were to take it apart and can't name all the parts and what they do, you should hire a professional. I don't want to hear you caused a fire because you messed something up.

The fan not coming on may or may not be due to a faulty cap. The cause of failure needs to be properly diagnosed rather than replacing parts willy nilly.

I'd start by disconnecting all the power from the unit. Discharging all caps. Then I would test the motor coil resistance.

Spoiler

Before someone comes in and yells it's impedance not resistance!@#$ Keep in mind you're testing with a multimeter which applies DC therefore it is resistance until you plug it into AC hehe

Next I'd test the caps if the motor checks out. Then I'd check the rest if those 2 are fine. (switches, thermostats, wiring, circuit breakers etc.)

 

[Gillbot]

Home warranty, lol...

As stated, they are useless.

 

[sixone]

I don't recommend doing this if you have no idea what you are doing. Let's put it this way, if you were to take it apart and can't name all the parts and what they do, you should hire a professional. I don't want to hear you caused a fire because you messed something up.

I think we're done here. Thanks!

 

[disappoint]

I think we're done here. Thanks!

You're welcome. Good luck. Any more questions feel free to ask.

 

[SphinxnihpS]

Reading is fun.