Heat Pumps and Electric Heating - Rheem RBHA Heat Pump

I am installing a used RHEEM RBHA-21J20MFDA in a recently remodled home. We needed to add ductwork and install air conditioning. We have the air handler and the ductwork hooked up. The heat pump is not wired in and the freon lines are not hooked up to the inside unit .
My question is.....Can I use the air handler as a heat source this winter without hooking up the outside unit? I have a new heat pump thermostat (for aux heat). There is no manual with the set and I haven't found one yet on the net.................Jack

Is your air handler mounted with a fossil fuel furnace or is this a typical standalone heat pump air handler with electric strips?

Is your air handler mounted with a fossil fuel furnace or is this a typical standalone heat pump air handler with electric strips?

It is the standalone with electric heat strips

There is no reason you cant use your electric strips for heating at all.

Okay, so lets see if we can walk you through this. What kind of tstat do you have and what kind of air handler? How are the terminals labeled on each?

Pictures would help that show the terminal labels.

Rheem Model RBHA-21J20MFDA with heat pump. I have photos of the unit and wiring diagram...Tell me how to send them...
Purple..control wiring to outside unit (defrost heater control)
Brown...control wiring to outside unit
Blue/White....heater 2 watt restrictor control wiring to t-stat sub base
Black/White...heater 1 control wiring to t-stat sub base
??/Green...blower relay control wiring to t-stat sub base
Red.....from control transformer to thermostat
I have a Hunter Model 44428 Thermostat

Thermostat labelsare as follows...
R, Y1, W1, W2, G, O/B, E, A, and C

Sorry was gone for the weekend. I can't seem to find any specs or manuals on that air handler and tstat but fortunately the wire labels on tstat are pretty standard. Here's a primer on what they mean Thermostat signals and wiring - Transwiki (http://wiki.xtronics.com/index.php/Thermostat_signals_and_wiring)

I'm gonna need a pic of the air handler terminal layout to get a better idea what we're dealing with. Pictures of wiring diagrams from access panels would be very nice if legible.

Sign up for a free pic site like photobucket and post pics there and URLs to pics here.

Before we go a whole lot further do you have a volt meter and do you know how to use it? The last thing you want to do is blow your tstat, transformer and control modules.

Here's how I'd attack this problem: start by getting power to your tstat. You need power flowing from the transformer to the R and C terminals on the tstat. R is 24VAC power and C is 24VAC common. Next get your fan wired from G on the tstat to the G terminal on air handler (assuming you have a G on air handler). Can't be sure without some pics as to where the transformer is located and what control module it may have to flow through.

If possible I'd be looking to just wire the tstat to air handler without any wiring to the heat pump as it will be much simpler to wire up for now. Which means I'd be interested in just getting R, C, G, W1 and maybe W2 wired to the air handler for now.

Check out this info on your Hunter tstat it may help Trane Heat Pump Thermostat Wiring Question. (http://toad.net/~jsmeenen/tranewire.html)

My husband is in need of the wiring diagram for our Rheem, we have only had it for a little over 2 years and we have had nothing but trouble from it. The fan frooze up and he tried to fix it, well it fell and all the wires come off, he does not remember how to connect them back up. He finally got the thermastat to come back on but it started somking :( Can someone please help, thanks


Katrina and Roderick Brown

Check out this info on your Hunter tstat it may help Trane Heat Pump Thermostat Wiring Question. (http://toad.net/~jsmeenen/tranewire.html)

Give me an Idea of how the 220 is wired into the two double breakers on the Rheem RBHA Air Handler using the Air Handlers heating strips for the only heat. I assume one is for the fan and the other for the heat strips??.........Jack

Give me an Idea of how the 220 is wired into the two double breakers on the Rheem RBHA Air Handler using the Air Handlers heating strips for the only heat. I assume one is for the fan and the other for the heat strips??.........Jack

What is your terminal layout on the air handler? Can you send some photos of the unit and wiring diagram?