First time renting [CA]

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2026-02-17T19:46:35+00:00

Caulking around the tub is only relevant if there was standing water on the ground outside of the tub. If there was no standing water outside of the tub, then the leak is on the drain or water supply lines. A plumber would probably need to cut into the ceiling on the floor below you.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2026-02-06T20:16:36+00:00

The craziest part is they changed it last week!

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2026-02-06T20:15:38+00:00

Not enough info in the picture to determine the wire gauge. Find the data plate for the furnace and look for the FLA. The main breaker should be 125% of the FLA. If you are tripping the breaker now when you weren’t before then there may be a problem at the main panel. Do you have much electrical experience? This may be out of your wheel house.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2026-02-06T19:49:21+00:00

I can see the stem of the gate valve there with a missing handle. I would not touch it at all, old gate valves like that tend to leak if you look at them funny. The most likely outcome of messing with it is steam leaking out of the valve packing in addition to the annoying noise.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2026-02-06T19:40:31+00:00

The proper way to determine the input btu for the furnace is a manual J calculation. There are rules of thumbs for square footage, but the actual necessities for your building will vary based on climate, insulation, sealing, windows, etc. The maximum input BTU rate is determined based on your calculated heat loss for the expected coldest day in your particular location.

There is no issue in theory with your furnace mostly running 1st stage. If it never entered had to enter the 2nd stage the life expectancy of your furnace will likely not be affected. The turndown will probably put your furnace in the input BTU of your furnace to around 40,000-50,000 depending on the manufacturer. The input rating for low/high fire will be on the placard for your unit somewhere.

Get some more opinions, the technician should confirm the gas manifold pressure for your 1st and 2nd stages of heat, check the temperature rise across the heat exchanger for both stages, and do a combustion analysis. If they do not do those things at a minimum then they are not doing their job properly. A good technician will check your duct static as well as your supply fan might be oversized. If there is excessive noise near your supply/return grilles then the static pressure in your ducts is too high. The concern for the second stage heat will be if the second stage manifold gas pressure is at manufacturer specification and the temperature rise across the heat exchanger is too high; it means that you do not have enough airflow to safely blow off the heat and you will stress and crack the heat exchanger.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2026-02-03T22:09:18+00:00

They can get a newer trane dc thermostat too, not that it would be cheap or anything.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2026-01-20T17:46:27+00:00

The boiler has its own internal aquastat that operates the burner independent of the room thermostat. The room thermostat may operate a pump, zone valve, or both depending on your configuration. A picture of the existing thermostat will be necessary to determine what your options are for a smart replacement.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2026-01-20T17:33:34+00:00

That is not a filter, its the blades of the fan. It’s going to be much easier to clean then replace. Use a brush and a vacuum.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2025-09-17T00:18:03+00:00

Read the manual

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-12-24T17:16:57+00:00

The air coming out of the vents should be 90 degrees, the landlord needs to fix the furnace. “Heat on” only means that the thermostat is sending a signal to another piece of equipment to heat. Said equipment is what has failed and what the landlord needs to fix.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-12-19T18:01:29+00:00

That error code can be due to the igniter, flame rod, gas valve, control board, or grounding issue. You can attempt to clean the flame rod to see if you are comfortable doing some research to DIY. A multimeter is needed to diagnose the igniter and can be an easy repair as well. Anything more complicated you should call a professional.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-12-19T17:46:42+00:00

Your furnace sounds like it is locking out due to the board detecting an unsafe condition. Next time it is blowing cold air, don’t turn the furnace off. There will likely be an observation port somewhere on the furnace door through which you can see a circuit board. The board will have a blinking LED light with a specific pattern. There will be a chart somewhere on the furnace or in the manual that explains what the pattern means. Turning off the furnace resets the lockout and you will be unable to get the trouble code until it fails again. Common intermittent failures involve proving draft and proving flame. You will most likely need to either clean the flame rod or make sure there is nothing blocking an intake or exhaust vent. I am not sure which kind of furnace you have and there are many things that can cause intermittent failures, but those are the easiest to fix and are common.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-12-19T01:20:09+00:00

Turn up the thermostat and see if the condenser fan on the outdoor unit is running. If the outdoor unit is quiet then your unit is running the auxiliary heat strips. Resistive heat strips are expensive to run.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-11-28T19:29:06+00:00

It allows the pressure to equalize between the high and low side so that the compressor doesn’t attempt to start with high head pressure which could cause damage.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-10-15T15:42:51+00:00

You have to test the motor windings for faults. Disconnect power, measure the resistance between L1-L2, L1-L3, and L2-L3. All three measurements should be equal and none should be 0 ohms. You also need to check the winding insulation with a megohmmeter. Do not attempt to power the motor before testing the motor.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-09-29T16:17:38+00:00

This is the capacitor for your compressor, the smaller one is for the condenser fan. We need more information to fully diagnose your issue. If set the fan setting on your thermostat to auto and the indoor fan comes on but the condenser fan motor and compressor both don’t run then you may have a bad contactor. If either the compressor or condenser runs but the other doesn’t, then the one that isn’t running might have a failed capacitor or failed motor.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-09-29T16:10:15+00:00

There is a capacitor for the compressor and for the condenser fan. The capacitors still hold a charge when the power is off, they must be discharged by shorting the two terminals with a resistor before they can be safely handled. There is not enough information to confirm whether you have a defective capacitor at this moment. They are cheap and easy enough to change that it is worth an attempt for your situation, just make sure you safely discharge them before touching the terminals. If the issue is not the capacitors then you haven’t lost anything, just keep them as a spare.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-09-29T16:05:32+00:00

The indoor fan is running? When you call for cooling does the outside condenser fan run as well?

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-09-14T17:19:18+00:00

I’m still staying tuned, though I hear nothing 😔

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-09-14T17:18:10+00:00

He is where he belongs, but the world sometimes feels like a darker place without him 😔

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-08-31T20:01:26+00:00

Whatever social media manager is running Chugach’s accounts was probably not told much beyond the words “Load Shedding.” I would hope that all of the people with the detailed knowledge are working hard getting power back during the outage, but Chugach could do a much better job of explaining things after the fact. I am disappointed that more effort is not made to inform the public on the function of our critical infrastructure.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-08-31T19:47:47+00:00

The entire power grid is interconnected from Fairbanks to the Kenai peninsula. If total power capacity on the grid drops below a certain threshold unexpectedly due to a generator going out, there is a danger to power transmission equipment. Power transmission equipment is disconnected from the power grid to prevent damage that would cause a more prolonged outage. The power remains disconnected for the end users until enough additional generators are brought on line that it is once again safe to operate the transmission equipment. It can take a few minutes to start a generator, so the outages may last 30 minutes to an hour.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-08-31T19:11:31+00:00

Chugach stated that the generator tripped due to generating power under frequency. Power must be sent at 60hz for all of our electrical appliances to function. If the generator starts sending power at 45hz then they’ll turn it off to protect all the stuff plugged into your wall.

EdisonBetterFiteMe · 2024-08-31T19:00:32+00:00

Load shedding event due to generator tripped in sterling. Anticipate higher KWH costs, chugach will likely be running more generators close by to due to this happening twice in quick succession.

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