ReplyProbably a problem with the vacuum pressure switch, call a pro and tell him the problem he should be able to solve the problem.
Regular Guest
I have an older Goodman outdoor package unit. The heat side is propane. At the beginning of the heating season [October], when I turned the heat on, the exhaust fan for the unit ran but the burner did not ignite. After turning off the heat at the thermostat and then turning back on after the exhaust fan stopped running, the heater turned on and everything returned to normal. A friend of mine suggested that this can happen in the beginning of the season due to some air trapped in the system. [We have piped in underground propane service] That sounded good at the time especially since everything seemed to be running fine..........until today. The same thing happened this morning. The thermostat called for heat and the exhaust fan kicked on but the burner did not ignite. Again when I shut down the furnace from the thermostat, waited for the exhaust fan to stop and restarted, everything is again working fine.
Obviously this sequence of events does not give me a lot of confidence if we leave the home for any amount of time. My first thoughts are usuually an igniter [which was replaced about 2 years ago] but the fact the furnace then works after restarting has me perplexed. If I call a HVAC tech out now he will be seeing a unit that works fine. Would appreciate some thoughts on this problem before I commit to a tech.
Professional Member*
Probably a problem with the vacuum pressure switch, call a pro and tell him the problem he should be able to solve the problem.
Regular Guest
Just to provide a followup. The HVAC tech arrived today and it turned out to be as suspected the draft inducer centrifugal switch located on the rear of the motor. He was able to knock on the end of the motor where the switch is located and activate it. Unfortunately one has to buy the complete unit with motor and housing assembly. That will be ordered tomorrow. It is $ online and it will be interesting to see what proce I am quoted by the service company.
Last edited by beenthere; 11-26-2012 at 09:15 PM. Reason: price
Professional Member*
Yea I don't like centrifugal switch type provers for draft, if it were to stick then the unit would fire without the draft fan running causing a dangerous situation. Remember the contractor has to make a living and pay insurance, truck, fuel for truck, truck insurance, tools, employees, light bill, workers comp insurance etc etc. a lot of people think we are trying to rip people off when in reality we are doing good to make 10% profit in a year.
Professional Member*
They also will not warranty the install of a part you supply, like say whoops it fell off the roof, sorry, or for some reason a faulty part, oh well you bought it now you pay a service call again plus part. It seems like you might save now but a good service company will back there work and warranty there parts.
Regular Guest
I am not looking for an online price just a "fair" price. I hear what the professionals are saying and respect that but unfortunately the HVAC business, due to its nature, also provides an opportunity to those willing to take advantage and who may not be as honest as you. I suspect that any HVAC professional in the business knows someone like this. Recently one of the 20/20 type programs did a segment similar to the one on cars where they set up a situation that the problem was a simple fix and then asked the mechanic to diagnose the problem to see who was ripping people off. In the HVAC segment it was surprising that 6 out of 6 contractors called failed to spot the simple set up problem and diagnosed non existent problems with much higher costs. That was not real comforting. Contractors like that do their biggest damage to their fellow honest peers.
Professional Member*
I agree, but it makes for good tv and that's all the networks care about. I know there are crooks out there and commission payed "service techs" but I have a hard time believing 6 out of 6 techs would do that. They probably did the stung on a lot more and only chose to air the crooks and not the good guys. Lots of big outfits pay their guys on commission and I just don't think that's a good way to do buisiness IMO.
Regular Guest
I guess it all depends on whose ox is being gored. An interesting thing happened in my situation today. My neighbor is a mechanical engineer and I was explaining about the centrifigul switch that was operating intermittenly. He asked to take a look. The switch is easy access so we did. The switch is just a piece of plastic surrounded by weights that push the switch outward when the motor spins. He first checked the switch which was fine but noticed that there was a little resistance on the plastic piece. That was cured with WD-40 and I put the HVAC company on hold to see if this permanently cured the problem. If it does that saved about $.
Last edited by beenthere; 11-27-2012 at 04:42 PM. Reason: price
Professional Member*
Just hope it doesn't stick open next time
Professional Member*
Sometimes we have to look at the big picture, sure we can bandaid things and make them work but when you call back pissed in a month then we get stung. It's in all of our best interest to change a failing part, I learned that very fast in this trade. If you can't trust your contractor maybe it's time to find a new one.
Posting Permissions