Carrier XHB123D heat/cool unit fan
Hi, thank you for choosing FixYa. I had a few questions and some possible things for you to try while you get back to me with the answers.
What kind of sounds do you have coming from the unit? Is the compressor
clicking (It'll sound like a semi-rhythmic click(pause)click(longer
pause)click(pause)clicketc...) Or does it sound like a low pitched
electrical hum?
A clicking is usually caused by something called a thermal overload. This is most often caused by a dirty coil (a copper tube covered by aluminum fins wrapped around the outside of the unit [or if it's a window unit, it'll be on the outside]). You can pick up some coil cleaner at any hardware store. Just follow the instructions (usually you dilute it down and spray it on with a squirtbottle or a hose, then rinse with water) to clean your coil. A dirty coil is usually easy to check, you can look down inside to see if the metal is excessively dirty.
I'm not sure where you live, but a common problem in the summer is a problem during the defrost cycle. When you're using your AC in the summer, the coil gets really cold. This causes water to condensate onto it, just like on a cold glass. However, this coil is so cold the water will freeze and build up on the outside. To combat this phenomenon, all air conditioners will cycle into "defrost mode" once in a while (it will switch to heating mode) to heat up the coils and melt off the ice. Unfortunately, on excessively hot days, the unit will be running so much that the defrost mode will be insufficient to break up the ice, resulting in a large ice buildup. This prevents air from getting into the unit and could cause serious damage. It's not uncommon, but unfortunately it's not really something you can fix yourself without the correct tools/know-how.
If the compressor is humming, it could be an indicator of a low freon charge. Again, it's not too uncommon for the freon to leak out of a unit, especially if it's 5 years old. Like with the defrost problem, this isn't something I recommend that you fix without the proper know-how. You can pick up a bottle of freon, some hoses, and a scale to weigh it out, but if something goes wrong (too much freon or too little freon), you could blow your compressor, and that's typically a $2000-5000 charge (for the part itself, not including labor).
If there's any other information you can give me, let me know and I can see if I can further diagnose your issue. You can try cleaning off the coil (also check for bent fins and straighten them with a pocket or butter knife while you're doing it) to see if that works (and it never hurts to do so). Also check your air filters to be sure that you're getting good air circulation throughout your house, because that can cause an issue as well. Let me know if there's any other information you can give me! Thanks,
Tj
