A/C just started making a deep hum...

[cannesdo]

I installed a 2nd A/C in the bedroom last summer, a Mach 8. I replaced the fan blade to make it quieter and it's worked great all year. But just recently...just as you're turning the A/C on it sounds normal for a second then this deep hum starts in. It feels like a vibration. You can feel it in the floor. Seems like something might be loose. Do they need tightening after awhile when you first install them? If so, what...the main bolts that secure it to the roof? I got it screwed in so tight when I first installed it. Waited a bit for it to adjust, then tightened it some more. Repeated this until it wouldn't turn anymore. Hard to believe it could be that.

[dougrainer]

cannesdo wrote:
So, Doug, tell me. How else does one call the company and reach a person? You've been critical of my methods but have provided no other methods for people who will find themselves in this position in the future.

When I have to work to reach someone who claims in their mission statement their goal is to provide "respectful service" all bets are off. I'm going to reach you any way I can.

And it is especially frustrating when they've sold me a poorly designed product.

Also...Just curious. What's your investment in defending poor quality product support?

As I stated, YOU are not allowed to get help and parts as a retail consumer. That is explained on the recording when you called. The fact that YOU want to do repairs does not give you the right to circumvent the procedures at RVP. It is NOT a poorly designed product. Yes, they had an issue and once they saw some failures they changed their production procedures. I HAVE NO PROBLEM GETTING PRODUCT SUPPORT FROM RVP. Because I am a trained Technician and they are there for ME, NOT YOU.
Now, what is someone to do that owns an RVP AC unit? They go to the local RVP authorized Service Center and either have them work on it or YOU purchase the parts you need at that Center. You do NOT call the manufacturer (RVP) and then complain when they do not offer you complete service when they state, they will not, and that is explained when you call by the automated system. Doug

[bearwayne]

Doug, are you by chance an RV Tech? You seem very knowledgeable and have helped a lot of of folks here including the OP. 🙂

[cannesdo]

So, Doug, tell me. How else does one call the company and reach a person? You've been critical of my methods but have provided no other methods for people who will find themselves in this position in the future.

When I have to work to reach someone who claims in their mission statement their goal is to provide "respectful service" all bets are off. I'm going to reach you any way I can.

And it is especially frustrating when they've sold me a poorly designed product.

Also...Just curious. What's your investment in defending poor quality product support?

[dougrainer]

tpi wrote:
What other models does this affect? A friend recently installed Mach 3 Power Savers.

This type problem only affects the Mach 8 that has the small separate condenser motor and fan blade(Unit has 2 fan motors instead on one) . The problem has been corrected as of 7-1-2015. Only a very few of the Mach 8's have this problem. Doug

PS, I do not work for RVP. But, I do KNOW what the procedures are for dealing with RVP. Doug

[tpi]

What other models does this affect? A friend recently installed Mach 3 Power Savers.

[cannesdo]

Review from a former employee of the company who gave it 1 out of 5 stars:



Pros

Turns out it was just a paycheck. Not worth breaking your neck for the inhumane treatment you receive.



Cons

Everything from the people to the lies to the disorganization. Has a "NOT MY JOB" mentality. Needs to be completely revamped organization. Needs to learn the value and meaning of teamwork.



Advice to Management

Don't lie to the employees. Be honest and tell the truth up front. Don't treat employees as puppets. There are some really dedicated employees out there that should be treated much better. Learn to expand your knowledge of the personnel and their value to the organization. Some employees actually enjoy their role and it's not just a paycheck. Some actually care what happens while others are just there trying to…

[cannesdo]

Airxcel, Suburban, Coleman, MaxxAir, Marvair, RVP...I will not be purchasing any of this company's products in the future. I honestly can't remember the last time I crossed paths with any employee of any company that was that overtly hostile.

[cannesdo]

What, now they've got their employees trolling the rv forums?

1.) Yes, precisely....The message states that they can not dispense *technical or troubleshooting* advice to non-technicians -- I was not seeking that. I was simply trying -- for three days -- to reach anyone about a warranty issue related to *parts*. I was not seeking technical advice but the "customer support) phone number gives you only one option, and that is tech support. After you work your way around the voice mail you find a parts department option.

2.) It's the only way to reach a person. And when I told her the problem she asked me for the information on the unit and said she'd send out the blade. No one responded to my e-mail messages. That's the only source of product support I could find.
Terribly run operation. When I called her back it rang about 200 times before she picked up.

I just now received this unbelievably rude e-mail from Mike Dickey, their technical assistance coordinator, saying -- ready for this?:

"I am glad that a plastic fan blade did not shear through the ac unit, and the roof of the coach to hit you in the face."

My response:

"Wow. That was out of line. Way out. If you're one of the guys in charge I can see why the people on the front line have absolutely no idea how to help -- and keep -- customers. Through the roof?....Get over yourself for a second and pretend I (your customer) am someone you actually care about.... I had to figure where the noise was coming from and took the shroud off and was thinking about running the A/C while the shroud was off in order to see (from my position on the *roof*) if I could narrow it down. I didn't know the blade was cracked badly at the hub at that point so yes, had I done that it could have broken completely off and done some serious damage to me if it had hit me.

You have now not only not apologized you've chosen instead to be blaming, defensive, sarcastic and *extremely* disrespectful. I'll be sure to share this message with my fellow RVers via the online forums. I will also be sharing this e-mail with your CEO, CFO, COO and your two VPs, explaining why I will no longer be purchasing your products and recommending that you find employment elsewhere."

[dougrainer]

cannesdo wrote:
Wow...ok....so for three days I've been trying to reach a person at Airxcel/RVProducts. No response to the contact form message. When you call tech support and choose the Mach 8 option (by pressing 2) they tell you to press 7 for the tech support queue then the call ends, every time. So I tried the Airxcel product option, then "parts", and finally reached a person.

(316) 832-4357 is the number to call. They are closed from 11:45 to 12:45 Central time.
Choose Airxcel products (press 1)
Choose parts (press 1)

Have your date of purchase, serial number, and model number ready (those are on the big white label on the A/C unit itself, under the shroud. Specify that you want the 3 blade unit.

No apology for the problem with the product. No apology for the 3 day effort to reach them. When I asked why I couldn't reach them via the Mach 8 option she said, "I don't know. Everyone's been telling me that today." No apology.

This is not a company that cares too terribly much about taking care of you after the sale. 3 days of work to save $30. Almost not worth it. Hopefully with this info you will have an easier time of it. And Coleman didn't seem to think too terribly hard about the design this product.

Thanks for all who took the time to reply.

You left out something. That Auto message states the prompts are ONLY FOR QUALIFIED TECHNICIANS, NOT retail customers like you. RVP does NOT and the message also states, they DO NOT give technical or troubleshooting advice to NON Technicians. Doug

[cannesdo]

Wow...ok....so for three days I've been trying to reach a person at Airxcel/RVProducts. No response to the contact form message. When you call tech support and choose the Mach 8 option (by pressing 2) they tell you to press 7 for the tech support queue then the call ends, every time. So I tried the Airxcel product option, then "parts", and finally reached a person.

(316) 832-4357 is the number to call. They are closed from 11:45 to 12:45 Central time.
Choose Airxcel products (press 1)
Choose parts (press 1)

Have your date of purchase, serial number, and model number ready (those are on the big white label on the A/C unit itself, under the shroud. Specify that you want the 3 blade unit.

No apology for the problem with the product. No apology for the 3 day effort to reach them. When I asked why I couldn't reach them via the Mach 8 option she said, "I don't know. Everyone's been telling me that today." No apology.

This is not a company that cares too terribly much about taking care of you after the sale. 3 days of work to save $30. Almost not worth it. Hopefully with this info you will have an easier time of it. And Coleman didn't seem to think too terribly hard about the design this product.

Thanks for all who took the time to reply.

[dougrainer]

cannesdo wrote:
Yes, I am the OP and just had 2nd round of this. 2nd bolt fell out, had to pull up the A/C to get it back in. 3rd was about to go. What a terrible design. It was still making a bad sound and everything was tightened so I pulled the fan blade and it stopped so I examined that and yep...big crack on the hub. Glad I didn't have a blade crack off. There was wear on the underside of the tips of the blades. Found people via another web forum that said they had the same problem and that RVP replaced the blade for them so I just wrote them. Hope that is the case as I'm not really happy about the idea of spending another $35+ to get a new blade when I already had to upgrade that due to *more* poor design. Did no one give this model a once-over before they sent it to market? I only compressed the foam about half. Maybe a little more. As much as I could with my little "girl hands".

These lock-tite things -- will they send those with the new blade (if they send one) or do I need to pick them up at the hardware store. Are those those rings that are cut and twisted a little? They go between the bottom top face of the bottom of the unit and bottom of the rubber spacer?

Glad I decided against going up and trying to find the source of the vibration while it was running with the shroud off. 😕

No, Locktite is a liquid. You dabble a few drops on threads and it seizes the threads to prevent them from loosening. IF RVP sends a kit it will have 3 rubber mounts and 3 of the underneath machine screws and a new blade(probably a 3 blade instead of the older 6 blade). Doug

[cannesdo]

Yes, I am the OP and just had 2nd round of this. 2nd bolt fell out, had to pull up the A/C to get it back in. 3rd was about to go. What a terrible design. It was still making a bad sound and everything was tightened so I pulled the fan blade and it stopped so I examined that and yep...big crack on the hub. Glad I didn't have a blade crack off. There was wear on the underside of the tips of the blades. Found people via another web forum that said they had the same problem and that RVP replaced the blade for them so I just wrote them. Hope that is the case as I'm not really happy about the idea of spending another $35+ to get a new blade when I already had to upgrade that due to *more* poor design. Did no one give this model a once-over before they sent it to market? I only compressed the foam about half. Maybe a little more. As much as I could with my little "girl hands".

These lock-tite things -- will they send those with the new blade (if they send one) or do I need to pick them up at the hardware store. Are those those rings that are cut and twisted a little? They go between the bottom top face of the bottom of the unit and bottom of the rubber spacer?

Glad I decided against going up and trying to find the source of the vibration while it was running with the shroud off. 😕

[j-d]

No No No. Foot Pounds is when it's so tight I have to jockey into position to push the wrench with my Foot instead of pull it with my Hand.

[MEXICOWANDERER]

Use "foot pounds" in a lab and a foot will pound your rear right out to the time clock. The proper term used in my 40-years is pound inches and pounds foot. Feet whatever. This holds true in civil engineering, aeronautics, you name it...