Restoring Cooling for a Radio Station Transmitter Room in Lecanto
The air conditioner serving a radio station transmitter room kept tripping its breaker and shutting down. That room holds equipment that has to stay cool to keep the station on the air.
The Rheem packaged unit is running with a new compressor and a new condenser coil, and the transmitter room is cooling again.
The customer's situation
Some cooling calls are about comfort. This one was about keeping a business running. The customer, a radio station in Lecanto, relies on two air conditioning units to cool the room that houses its transmitting equipment. When one of those units started tripping its breaker and shutting down, the station needed answers quickly. This customer understands how important that equipment is and is very quick to call us whenever either unit at the site has an issue.
What our technician found
When our technician arrived, the breaker had tripped. He started with the electrical side of the system. The contactor, which is the switch that sends power to the compressor and outdoor fan, was reading within its normal range, so the next step was to test the compressor itself.
Using a meter, he checked the compressor windings. The readings between the start and common terminals and between the run and common terminals both showed an open circuit. That result pointed to a failed compressor. He called our service manager with the findings, and the team began searching for a replacement.
On the repair visit, the technician checked the standing pressures in the system. Both sides read 150 pounds per square inch, which was slightly low. He recovered the refrigerant from the system, then removed the old compressor and filter drier while flowing nitrogen through the lines. He brazed in a new filter drier and a new compressor, again with nitrogen flowing, which helps keep the inside of the copper clean while it is heated.
Before charging the system, he ran a pressure test. That test revealed a second problem: the condenser coil was leaking. Rather than charge a system that would lose refrigerant again, he stopped and called the office. The team agreed to pause the job until a replacement microchannel aluminum condenser coil could be located.
How we solved it
Our service manager researched the failed parts for availability and pricing. An estimate was sent to the customer by email and text message for approval. Once the customer approved the repair, the parts were ordered in a timely manner and the technician was scheduled to complete the work. The repair was a success.
Why repair was the right call
For this customer, repairing the existing unit was the most practical and fastest way to restore cooling. The equipment this unit protects is very important to the station, so getting the room cool again quickly was the priority.
Equipment and parts on this job
- Rheem straight cool packaged unit, which is a cooling only system
- Replacement compressor
- Replacement microchannel aluminum condenser coil
- New filter drier
- Refrigerant
