AC getting amperage spike after an hour use.
I have a Coleman Mach 3+ non ducted AC. Recently it started having an amperage spike after about an hour and trips a 20amp breaker on the house (I know I need a 30a) or it faults my generator which is...
Forum Discussion
Roof top A/Cs are usually less than 15 amp draw.. No problem on a 20 amp breaker if they are running well and do not need a good cleanout of the condenser coils.
WAIT. SUSPECT.. What happens if the condenser is dirty (And note on most A/C's the dirty side is the side you can not see.. AirExcell (Coleman) is the only Sucker I know of.. The rest blow.. By that I mean suck/blow air through the condenser.. Suckers get dirty on the OUTSIDE where you can see it)
Normal operation.. An A/C is a heat pump.. it pumps heat from the Evaporator to the Condenser.. then a fan blows outside air over and through the condenser to carry the heat away..
Dirty Condenser: The air does not move freely and thus heat builds up. as the heat builds up.. Charles law comes into play (Dang I went to College about 1970 and I still remember it's Charles Law.. Scary).
As The heat builds Charles law says the volume of the refrigerant increses.. And because of something called the Thermal Constant of Expansion... It increases faster than the volume of the tubing and passages so the pressure goes up up up.
Now as the pressure goes up the compressor has to work harder and harder to push refrigerant through the lines... and the harder it works the more current it draws.
Now since it's taking an hour... (It's not Really Really dirty) That would take only 15-20 minutes in my case) but I would suggest you go "Up on the roof" with the tools (#2 Phillips on most rigs) to clean the thing.
You will likely have to remove the shroud (Around a dozen screws.. take a magnetic parts tray with you) and then an inner cover.. (Assorted ways they do that some are real easy (Like 6 screws easy) some are ... "Fun" (Not one bit).
Coleman.. Take a bigger Screwdriver (like A #4) in addition to the #2.. 4 Bolts lift the shroud peal the condenser replace shroud and bolts.
WAIT. SUSPECT.. What happens if the condenser is dirty (And note on most A/C's the dirty side is the side you can not see.. AirExcell (Coleman) is the only Sucker I know of.. The rest blow.. By that I mean suck/blow air through the condenser.. Suckers get dirty on the OUTSIDE where you can see it)
Normal operation.. An A/C is a heat pump.. it pumps heat from the Evaporator to the Condenser.. then a fan blows outside air over and through the condenser to carry the heat away..
Dirty Condenser: The air does not move freely and thus heat builds up. as the heat builds up.. Charles law comes into play (Dang I went to College about 1970 and I still remember it's Charles Law.. Scary).
As The heat builds Charles law says the volume of the refrigerant increses.. And because of something called the Thermal Constant of Expansion... It increases faster than the volume of the tubing and passages so the pressure goes up up up.
Now as the pressure goes up the compressor has to work harder and harder to push refrigerant through the lines... and the harder it works the more current it draws.
Now since it's taking an hour... (It's not Really Really dirty) That would take only 15-20 minutes in my case) but I would suggest you go "Up on the roof" with the tools (#2 Phillips on most rigs) to clean the thing.
You will likely have to remove the shroud (Around a dozen screws.. take a magnetic parts tray with you) and then an inner cover.. (Assorted ways they do that some are real easy (Like 6 screws easy) some are ... "Fun" (Not one bit).
Coleman.. Take a bigger Screwdriver (like A #4) in addition to the #2.. 4 Bolts lift the shroud peal the condenser replace shroud and bolts.
