Hvac- The Trane Stops Here
January 31st, 2008 by admin
I’ve been sweating all day today. It’s 104 degrees outside, but I work indoors where it is supposed to be air-conditioned!
Our Trane air conditioning (heat pump) unit is 20 years old and it has been a good one. However, today decided it couldn’t take the heat anymore. Yesterday, it seemed like it ran all day but the house didn’t feel as cool as usual. We thought it was because we had been going in and out while cleaning the garage. We also had the oven on because it was birthday Sunday and the family was coming to our house for dinner. We didn’t get concerned until we noticed it was still rather warm inside (80 degrees) after the doors had been shut for several hours. While laying in bed about midnight I heard the unit try to kick on, but it made a strange sound and gave up. By morning it was evident that we had a problem.
I started calling local HVAC repair companies and found a guy who could come out that very day. It would be five o’clock, but hey, that’s better than having to wait until tomorrow night or Wednesday, which was the soonest some of the repairmen could get to us.
I was hoping for a loose wire or that the unit only needed a boost in Freon. No such luck. The fan on the compressor motor was getting stuck and was about to go out completely. He oiled it and charged the coolant. He said it might last a day or a week, but we would have to replace the unit soon-perhaps before the end of the season. He and my husband agreed it just isn’t worth putting $500 into a new fan motor and other parts that would provide a temporary fix. That wasn’t what I wanted to hear. Repairs and replacements such as these never come at a good time.
We didn’t have air-conditioning in the home I grew up in. We had an attic fan that sucked in hot air from the outside. At night, we were plenty cool-almost too cool. We didn’t know what we were missing until my parents installed central heat and air when I was a teenager. It didn’t take long for us to get used to it. Today, it didn’t take but a few hours for me to realize what I was missing. I have become spoiled. What a wonder that we can walk over to the wall, adjust a dial and be as comfortable as we desire!
Our next step is to get several quotes from places that sell energy-efficient units. I worked for American Standard/Trane for about five years before becoming a freelance writer, so I know I want to purchase something that has a high SEER rating, which can save as much as 40% on our electric bill. If you think of it that way, whatever payments we have to incur to purchase a unit will be offset by the lower monthly heating and cooling bills. Another positive thought about replacing the unit now is that when we decide to sell our house, having a new HVAC system will be a great selling point.
All’s well if you simply look at the situation in the best light possible. We’ve decided to focus on all the wonderful years of excellent service we had from the unit, rather than complaining about what we will have to spend on what was once considered a luxury item-nice cool air-conditioning. Ahhhh!
Yvonne Perry is a freelance writer and editor who assists people with any type of writing project. She is available to assist you with telling your story or writing your book
Tags: air conditioning, American Standard, heat pump, HVAC, SEER, Trane
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