Monday night, I go back out to the garage after dinner, and it feels stuffier than normal. I look at the thermostat, and it says 79* instead of the set-point of 77*. I re-set the circuit breakers, as that sometimes allows an AC relay to re-set. No dice, this time. I go out to the motor assembly outside, and the fan isn't moving. Uh-ohh. I turn off the AC and let the fan run. Call the AC company that we have a maintenance contract, and they say sure, we'll come out, but be warned, that there are many calls today. Can I make an appointment for tomorrow? No...but Wednesday, sure! OK...I'll wait by the phone for the call to be made 30 minutes prior to the arrival of the technician. At midnight, I get the call. Meanwhile, the temperatures have risen to 84*. He checks out the outside fan, and asks me to start the AC. I go back out and the fan is running! How did you do that? He said he push-started it. Huh? Yup, if the starting condenser fails, you can get the fan to start and it'll keep running until the thermostat shuts it off. So...bad condenser plus labor minus discount is $180.
I go online and find that same condenser for $16 from Amazon. It's on order for the next time this happens, now that I know what the symptoms are.
But the real question is: why do these things always break on a weekend, Holiday, or late at night? Do they have a mind of their own and seek to irritate the bejesus out of their owners? Are they programmed by the technicians so that they earn OT when they are up for replacement?
Grrrrrr....
I go online and find that same condenser for $16 from Amazon. It's on order for the next time this happens, now that I know what the symptoms are.
But the real question is: why do these things always break on a weekend, Holiday, or late at night? Do they have a mind of their own and seek to irritate the bejesus out of their owners? Are they programmed by the technicians so that they earn OT when they are up for replacement?
Grrrrrr....