Air Conditioning - Compressor won't start

At least I think that is what the problem is.......

Unit: Emerson Quiet Cool Window Unit (the thing is ancient)

Symptoms: Today is the first day I tried to fire it up since last summer.

I turned it on and noticed that after about 30 minutes it was still pumping out warm air.

After a bit more investigation, I noticed that each time I turn it on, I hear a slight hum for about 3-5 seconds and then it stops. I'm assuming that the compressor trying to start and then is tripping off on a thermal overload. If I leave it on for about 10 min, I can hear it try to cycle a few times and I also noticed that I can hear a hum coming from my circuit breaker panel at the same time.

I'm assuming that I will need to get a new unit, but I am wondering if there is anything I can do to get it working for a day or two until I get the time to purchase and install a new one.

I took a look at this thread and it looks like my compressor is seized. Am I correct in my thinking? I dont wanna beat on this thing without running it by someone else that knows more about this stuff. http://forum.doityourself.com/showthread.php?t=298393&highlight=compressor

You are correct that the compressor is going out on overload. It's either locked or stuck.

Just like when (well you may not have) we crawled under our cars and whacked the starter with a hammer to get it to start the car.

Slide the unit out of the caseing and whack the compresor. Use a rubber mallet or the handle of a claw hammer. DON'T do any damage to the comressor shell.

Might work, might not. But start bugeting for a new unit.

Chris

thanks for the confirmation. I have a nice 3 lb dead blow plastic hammer that is going to be put to good use this evening.

You might be able to use a small hard start kit to get it going. It is worth a shot.

he compressor and motor are sitting on spring mounts in the can. Give it a good smake, just enough to move stuff around.

I'm not sure it will work, but it has worked in the past.

It's a try, not a fix.

Chris

Attempting to start a compressor by whacking it with a hammer could cause damage.

The compressor may not be locked up; a bad capacitor or electrical connection will cause the same problem.

It's impossible to diagnose a problem over the internet; one can only make an uneducated guess.

The first thing I would check is the capacitor, then the wires to the compressor. I agree with Muggle, be nice and don't hit the poor little compressor, it may not be at fault.

I understand what you are saying...... The basics should be checked first. Too often the compressor is blamed for other problems. A smack with a rubber mallet shouldn't hurt anything. But, since we may not be dealing with experienced technicians, we don't know how they might interpret the suggestion.

I don't know about window unit, but same thing happened to our centrual unit, it turned to be a bad capacitor.