HVAC Repair and Advice Thread

[Jeff Lebowski]

We had the same problem a couple of months ago with our Rheem. Bought a new control board.

[Pelado]

We had the same problem a couple of months ago with our Rheem. Bought a new control board.

How old is your Rheem?

[Jeff Lebowski]

How old is your Rheem?

About ten years

[Scott R Nelson]

So I had them come by that evening and install a new furnace. The old one had been a Rheem 90% efficient model. The new one, a Goodman 96% efficient model, was a lot less expensive than I was expecting - about $3,500.

Aaaghh!

Repeat after me: "It's only money". I appreciate that fixing my furnace was a little more than a hundred bucks.

[Omaha 680]

I recently had two 240 volt outlets, each on its own 50 amp circuit installed in my garage. I am most definitely not an electrician but I believe the outlet is 14-50P. I use one outlet for charging my car and the intent was to use the other for a heater to heat the workout/weight space for short periods of time in the winter. The problem is I can't seem to find any 50 amp garage heater with the 14-50P plug type. Almost all 50 amp heaters appear to require hard wiring. I did find some portable 50 amp heaters meant for workshops or construction sites that have the proper plug but I'd prefer to get one that is made for hanging on a wall or ceiling. Does anyone know:

(a) of a 50 amp heater model with the plug I need?
(b) whether it is possible to attach a 14-50P plug to a hard wire unit? I see that some heater companies do sell the plug extension.

[old_gregg]

I recently had two 240 volt outlets, each on its own 50 amp circuit installed in my garage. I am most definitely not an electrician but I believe the outlet is 14-50P. I use one outlet for charging my car and the intent was to use the other for a heater to heat the workout/weight space for short periods of time in the winter. The problem is I can't seem to find any 50 amp garage heater with the 14-50P plug type. Almost all 50 amp heaters appear to require hard wiring. I did find some portable 50 amp heaters meant for workshops or construction sites that have the proper plug but I'd prefer to get one that is made for hanging on a wall or ceiling. Does anyone know:

(a) of a 50 amp heater model with the plug I need?
(b) whether it is possible to attach a 14-50P plug to a hard wire unit? I see that some heater companies do sell the plug extension.

have you considered the fire in barrel method

[Moliere]

I recently had two 240 volt outlets, each on its own 50 amp circuit installed in my garage. I am most definitely not an electrician but I believe the outlet is 14-50P. I use one outlet for charging my car and the intent was to use the other for a heater to heat the workout/weight space for short periods of time in the winter. The problem is I can't seem to find any 50 amp garage heater with the 14-50P plug type. Almost all 50 amp heaters appear to require hard wiring. I did find some portable 50 amp heaters meant for workshops or construction sites that have the proper plug but I'd prefer to get one that is made for hanging on a wall or ceiling. Does anyone know:

(a) of a 50 amp heater model with the plug I need?
(b) whether it is possible to attach a 14-50P plug to a hard wire unit? I see that some heater companies do sell the plug extension.

No idea on heater models but have you considered a mini split unit? That’s what I have in my garage and I rarely need it to heat much but use it to cool in the hot summer days.

[Omaha 680]

have you considered the fire in barrel method

I only use that under the bridge downtown.

No idea on heater models but have you considered a mini split unit? That’s what I have in my garage and I rarely need it to heat much but use it to cool in the hot summer days.

I looked at it. We will probably put one of those in our attic we are looking to finish next. But it's too much money and hassle just to avoid freezing when working out in the winter. We only spend time int the garage to lift weights and use the rower, and in the summer it is fine if we just open the garage door. If I can raise the temp even 10 degrees in the coldest parts of the winter I would be fine.

[Omaha 680]

I recently had two 240 volt outlets, each on its own 50 amp circuit installed in my garage. I am most definitely not an electrician but I believe the outlet is 14-50P. I use one outlet for charging my car and the intent was to use the other for a heater to heat the workout/weight space for short periods of time in the winter. The problem is I can't seem to find any 50 amp garage heater with the 14-50P plug type. Almost all 50 amp heaters appear to require hard wiring. I did find some portable 50 amp heaters meant for workshops or construction sites that have the proper plug but I'd prefer to get one that is made for hanging on a wall or ceiling. Does anyone know:

(a) of a 50 amp heater model with the plug I need?
(b) whether it is possible to attach a 14-50P plug to a hard wire unit? I see that some heater companies do sell the plug extension.

I know everyone was dying for closure on this so here it is; we ended up ordering this guy: FOSTORIA, 10kW Watt Output, 14-50P, Portable Electric Salamander Heater - 3LY28|FES-1024-1CA - Grainger

It was literally one of only two models I could find that had the power I was looking for and came prewired with the 14-50P plug to match my outlet. I was hoping to hang it in a specific corner and I suppose we still might be able to do that, but my wife actually said she like the portability aspect of it. I'm hoping this gives me just enough to want to lift consistently at home in the winter.

[Bo Diddley]

Nice.

[LVAllen]

Two story, split system (condenser is outside, evaporator is in the attic), 3 ton units for both upstairs and down. They are also 25 years old running R-22. Over the last few years, I've replaced a blower motor, both condenser fan motors, a control board, and numerous capacitors (the labor was all me). Then, last week or so, the upstairs cooling seemed particularly weak. It would blow for a little bit, then the air seemed to slow to a trickle. I assumed the evaporator was freezing over, so I stopped by one of those guys hawking HVAC services inside of Costco and had them come out for a tune-up. The initial diagnosis was low on refrigerant, rusty evaporator coils (possibly leaking said refrigerant), an overworked compressor, and a condenser fan motor that he claimed was leaking oil, despite me having installed it like 3 months before. The tech's recommendation was $5k - half for leak investigation, and half for refrigerant. His sales guy's recommendation was $35k worth of new systems and their installation.

For now, I bought 2 lbs of R22 off a website for $75/lb (instead of the $600/lb the tech said they were going for), and charged the system. When I bought it, there was a check mark that said I was either EPA 608 certified, or would provide it to someone who was. Being the law abiding citizen I am, I took a couple of hours and got certified for Type I. It seems to be working fine for now.

I'm not sure how much longer my wife is going to let me keep repairing it, so it looks like I need to do some research on what new systems cost.

[Moliere]

Good luck. When I started dumping thousands of dollars into my two systems, I decided to just replace them. They were both close to 20 years old at the time and this was before 2020 so prices hadn't run up so much at the time. I'm glad I did it when I did. I had two variable speed units installed and they are awesome. I love that they don't constantly turn on and off but the speed changes based on the need and the temp doesn't really vary at all in the house. They are also super efficient. Total cost to install was just north of $20k and my setup is similar with both condensers outside and the evaporators in the attic.