Joe and the Volcano
Friends, Romans, countrymen lend me your… wait wrong century. Welcome back faithful readers! As most of your know, I usually stand on my soapbox here and try to share some tidbits about air conditioning, plumbing or something else that can improve the quality of life in your home. Today it’s story time only, as I was touched by what I heard from the street yesterday.
Joe and his wife are both in their late 80’s, and found themselves in a difficult situation. They have a five-year old Rheem air conditioning system that another company had told them had a bad compressor. They called us for a second opinion, as they just couldn’t believe that a five-year old AC system would need such a major repair. The other company told them about the compressor and just left, leaving this elderly couple to swelter in a home at 84 plus degrees. Joe’s wife has some health issues, which the heat only made worse.
We fast forward to our technician showing up around 4:00 pm yesterday to provide the second opinion on the unit. He began to diagnose the unit and immediately noticed that this particular AC system had two compressors.
AC tidbit of knowledge; it is very common for AC units to have dual compressors. The unit has both a small and large compressor, and most of the time to save energy, the unit runs on the small compressor. The large compressor only engages when the heat load on the house is higher such as late afternoon, when the day is the hottest.
Our technician turned the unit on and the first compressor engaged and began to thump like a disco. The noise was horrendous and he shut the unit down. Then the proverbial cartoon light bulb appeared above his head. He simply wondered if the unit could be made to bypass the first compressor and run on the second, and the phone calls began. Again, we fast-forward another 45 minutes, five phone calls to a Rheem expert, and three different attempts at rewiring the unit and voila, the first compressor was out of the loop, the second engaged and the home began to cool. Joe’s wife smiled for the first time since our technician had arrived on site.
The easy thing to do would have been the same thing that the first company did, diagnose the bad compressor, give Joe a price and just leave. Our team here at Art Plumbing and Air Conditioning never takes the low road and we try our best to help people when we can. Yes, Joe and his wife will need to get the first compressor in the unit replaced. The compressor must be ordered and will take 3-5 days to obtain. Not so bad, now that a temporary repair was made to the unit and Joe’s house is no longer a volcano.
Our company slogan is “We are always there when you need us”. It’s not just about being there when you need us, it’s about going the extra mile and doing the right thing, particularly when someone is suffering. The next time you’re faced with a plumbing or air conditioning service need in your home, give the experts at Art Plumbing and Air Conditioning a call at 1-888-TELL-ART or schedule your service call online by visiting www.artplumbingandac.com .
House Whisperer out…
