ac compressor

[jphud]

Hi There,
Has anyone replaced a compressor on a marine air unit? Were there any unexpected problems in the system caused by the compressor failure?
The compressor is a Tecumseh RGA5467EXA.

Thanks

 

[31seahorse]

I've changed the entire unit, not just the compressor. I believe there is a lethal (like don't breathe it or you die) gas in the compressor units. Freon??

Find an HV/AC professional to answer your question.

 

[DeniseO30]

The comp is no differen't then a comp in any unit. You know for sure it's bad? They fail a number of ways. If the motor inside burned the refrigerant inside will be full of acid. Assuming you know how to handle all the equipment related to the trade. you will need to recover the bad, install "burn out"filter dryers on the suction and discharge lines. It is usally most cost effective to replace the unit if they are small like many marine units. good luck.

 

[kloudie1]

Denise is right on.. I changed the one in my unit but the failure was a corrosion pinhole thru the case which was not reparable.. Compressor was still fine . I bought the new compressor and had a professional shop replace the compressor because it is silver soldered and I didn't have the appropriate equipment. My old unit has Freon 22 in it.. it is not toxic ... but if you burn it with a torch .. the resulting gas is toxic. I had the shop test, evacuate it, and recharge it .. Works fine again. Final cost wasa little over half the cost of a new 12000 BTU unit. I removed the unit and took it to the shop otherwise, the labor cost would have driven the price to parity with a new unit.

 

[DeniseO30]

We had an Ice Cream machine at the Jersey shore. 42,000 (3.5 ton) leak in the can owner was not happy. comp was close to $2k alone.

 

[Bill Roosa]

Why do you think it is the compressor? Perhaps it has just lost its freon. The very first thing I'd check is the shrader valve (tire air valve on a car or bike tire) that is used to put freon into the unit. They have a nasty habit of leaking over time. Take off the cap and with some spit on your finger put it around the valve to see if it makes a bubble.

 

[jphud]

Thanks all,

The compressor is shorted to ground. It uses R-22, the fan control and thermostat work fine.
I can get the compressor for about a hundred bucks just need to find an AC mechanic to properly replace and clean system.
When it is up and running it will be a new install to an H37c.

 

[DeniseO30]

shorted comps don't always have burnt windings. you may get lucky. Hope it works out for you!

 

[jphud]

Thanks again Denise,

John

 

[DeniseO30]

reverse purge the lines before you have it soldered back together, we used to use freon for that.. now we use nitrogen. also check the suction line for black residue.. sometimes it will get 4-8 inches up there depending on how bad the windings burnt, if they did. Best way is to weigh in the charge also. Hopefully your friend will have an electronic scale that the can of freon sits on.