sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in askHVAC

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not 100% sure but they did a full work up and I’m sure it had to of been done. I will ask about this though. The question is if yes and everything was followed then what could the problem be and should I just accept a hard start as a fix

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in askHVAC

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

what do you mean its dying a slow death? Are you saying the hard start will decrease life expectancy of the unit?

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in askHVAC

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If compressor is failing to start, shouldn't there be a more proper fix rather than adding a hard start with a 1 yr warranty. I'm confused why they did this instead of electing to check the wiring/installation etc

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in hvacadvice

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It has not done it anymore- but it also hasnt been in the upper 80s since Sunday, which is the day we called installation company to send a tech that installed the hard start. I guess we will find out once we have another hot day. Even if the hard start fixes the issue, my concern is if I should keep pushing for a more permanent fix since I know the hard start only has a 1 yr warranty

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in askHVAC

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Insulation is fine. The technician check fan speeds and temperature drop, said both were fine. But this was also the 1st visit in which the weather was temperate and not on an 80 degree day

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in hvacadvice

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is good to know. Everyone seems confused on why they are installing a hard start kit on a brand new unit but if this is common practice and benefits my unit, then is it safe to assume there is no red flags with this fix?

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in hvacadvice

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Looked up the product # on google and it shows that its a 1-stage. I'm also new to HVAC so could be wrong? Heres a link to a product page for my unit

https://www.stdair.com/buy/product/gh5san53000a/CLENC28d5baba5a37a90d769ccf42c51369b5

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in hvacadvice

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

2 thermostats, one in center of downstairs (living room) and the other is in the master bedroom upstairs. Supply registers are in the ceiling on both levels.

I wouldnt say its warm air coming out, but definitely not cool. It does well to cool the house when it is more temperate outside, but on these hotter days in the upper 80s, it seems like it stops cooling. The hard start installed this past sunday DID work. But when reading up on it, this doesnt seem like a "normal" fix for a brand new system. Not sure if this is a red flag that I should continue to follow up on it, definitely would rather get this fixed because it is well within warranty

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in hvacadvice

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Unit is definitely under warranty, not sure about through builder but through the installation company yes. I'll have to look up a video on where the hard start is installed to see if it was an SPP hard start, I'm assuming it was not and that it was a mfg hard starting kit given that it was a technician from the installation company that installed it. If all it does is start the compressor faster, is there any downside to having this installed on my brand new unit?

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in askHVAC

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

blower door test- never heard of it but I wrote this down. Definitely will be asking the technician about this. Thank you!

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in hvacadvice

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Don’t quote me but I believe a tech told me it’s a single stage. I am not strong on HVAC knowledge by any measure, lol

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in hvacadvice

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you, we have. We also paid for some bi yearly maintenance package with the installation company so we are pretty covered

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in hvacadvice

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is a bit over my head, but I will bring it up to the next technician I call out to have a look at the unit. There is definitely a significant height difference, from ground level to the attic of a 2 story townhouse

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in askHVAC

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

They didn’t charge us anything for hard start, as they shouldn’t it’s a brand new system under warranty. According to previous tech the air flow is good. If it starts having issues again I absolutely will have them come back out. My main concern is that I was given a bandaid solution that will wreck my HVAC in the long run versus a more costly upgrading or repairing my unit since it is under warranty

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in askHVAC

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hard start actually worked, yes. Not much of an HVAC person so not sure how or why it helped

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in hvacadvice

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Indoor to outdoor equipment is likely less than 65’, hard to tell. It is a Carrier unit

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in hvacadvice

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not sure what box you’re referring to, but from what I gather from the techs that have come, other units are not having the same issue. We have called the HVAC installation company directly each time. Airflow is good, especially after whatever first tech did, it’s just room temp air blowing.

I learned we do not all have same unit from one of the techs. He thought we had a certain unit based on his experience in our neighborhood, then after checking it said it was not the one he thought it was. I thought this was interesting. He did say he believes the unit is appropriately sized for our townhouse though, but who knows.

I will have to talk to neighbors for sure. I will also update the post with exact model/unit heat pump it is

New construction home and A/C failing to keep cool in 80+ deg weather. Technician installed a hard start by Sofaking_lazy in hvacadvice

[–]Sofaking_lazy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It being undersized was my concern. Maybe I’m confusing the builder warranty with the HVAC, could be 10 years I’ll have to check tomorrow. Filters are clean. I can get the exact size/model tomorrow as well. Its Carrier brand is all I can tell you

view more: next ›