Outdoor fan stops before job is done

[sschad]

Hi - I need help knowing what might be going on with our Carrier AC. We, too, have been experiencing the temp rise during continuous running - climbing 7-9 degrees higher than our set temp. I cleaned the exterior unit (lots of dust and debris build up on the coil) and that solved 85% of the problem - now we are hovering at about 1 degree above set temp. The problem is the fan on it (exterior unit) still stops running before getting the interior temp down to the shut off point, causing the output air temp to gradually rise. The only pattern I see is that it seems to be keeping the temp at that 1-degree-above-set-temp point. I checked the copper piping, and the lines are "warm" and "cold and wet" as was suggested in other posts. We haven't changed the filter, yet, but I don't see what that would have to do with the outdoor fan stopping prematurely. It does NOT have the same problem at lower outdoor temperatures.

Any thoughts? Could it be the air filter (on indoor unit)? Or, is this normal foir extreme days?

[mattison]

Is the compressor still running when the outdoor fan shuts off?

If the outdoor fan is stopping while the indoor fan and the compressor is still running then you have either a bad fan motor or capacitor. The easy route is to 1st replace the capacitor and see if the is the fix.

[sschad]

Thanks for the reply - sounds promising. How do I know if the compressor is running? The indoor fan is definitely on. Not sure about the compressor....

[sschad]

Found the answer - thought this might be of interest to others out there. I discovered that our electric utility has a box installed on our house that shuts off the compressor every 15 minutes. The previous owners had it installed for a discount on their usage charges. The contractor I spoke to said I should have it removed, since it can wear out the compressor - not made for that kind of on-off action.

Good to know.

[mattison]

Every 15 minutes!!!! That will kill the poor thing. Good find.