American standard thermostat does not have any power. how to fix?

SOURCE: 1 year old system 16

If everything (inside/outside units) is running 'constantly' and you are not getting any cooling there are several things that could be wrong, and I will list them below in the order I think most likely based on the limited knowledge I have about your problem.

1. Often customers will say 'everything' is running when in actuality everything is running with the exception of the 'compressor.' The reason being is that the compressor has an unique running noise which is not easily recognized by the customer. A serviceperson who works on Air Conditioners can pick it (the sound of the compressor) up - simply because they are accustomed to it and it is easily recognized. Therefore, I am unsure whether or not your compressor is running although I do think you inside and outside fan motors are running. All that being said - the fact that you are not getting cooling indicates to me that your compressor is either (A) not running or (B) the system is 'out & or very low' on refrigerant (which will cause the compressor to run very quiet and make it difficult for even an experienced serviceperson to hear it.

Often when encountering systems out of low on refrigerant I've had to actually feel the compressor
(with the system running) to determine whether or not the compressor was running. If you are mechanically inclined and want to determine if your compressor is running - I will just tell you to be very careful when putting your hands in and around electrical components.

One of the things I've done in the past when a little hesitant to actually touch the compressor (with system running) but still wanting to know if it (compressor) is running is to take a long screwdriver and hold the tip to the compressor - therefore being able to pick up the vibration of the compressor (which is out of gas or very low). If you do this and feel the vibration of the compressor and then know that it's running you have the infomation needed to understand that your system is either out of or very low on refrigerant.

If, however, you determine that the compressor 'is not' running I would bet that when you TURN THE SYSTEM OFF AND MAKE SURE ALL POWER IS OFF - and hold your hand on the compressor it will be very warm/very hot - which indicates that it has heated up and went 'off' on internal overload. You could still be experiencing the problem - of lack of refrigerant - because when the refrigerant level is low the compressor 'will' heat up.

However, is also possible (and more likely) that the compressor is 'off and hot' because it has broken down 'electrically' which can be caused by various factors - chief of which is - it is mechanically/electrically wore out and needs replacing. Note: it's also possible, although unlikely, that you have a bad 'run capacitor.' I would take a look at it (it's a gray or silver oblong shape electrical device with wires attached to it) and see if it's 'bulged' in any way - which is an obvious sign that it's bad. Barring a 'bulge' I would assume the capacitor is ok - which it probably is.

At this point and with the above indications - I would think you'd need an experienced serviceperson to look at your system.

2. But - 'it's also possible that when you actually turn the system off - MAKE SURE ALL POWER IS OFF -and feel of the compressor it "could be cool/cold' to the touch. If' that is the case - then I would look for a 'wire burnt off it's connection' (somewhere in the unit), bearing in mind that the obvious place for this to be will be on the compressor itself.

You will have wires running to the compressor and will be behind a little black plastic cover held on by a silver wire clamp. Remove the clamp - pull the plastic cover out - and examine the connections under it - looking for a wire that is burnt off. Move the wires a little because often the wire will be burnt off but it will not look like it - and by moving the wire you will see that it is not connected. If you find a wire burnt off - then you just need to get a new connector and connect it back on the wire and put the connector back on it's connection and you 'should' be fine.

A wire being burnt off a connection at the compressor 'could be' a sign of something seriously wrong with your system but 'usually' you can repair the wire and the unit will be ok. Maybe the connection had been 'loose' from the factory and finally burnt into or etc etc. But, as stated - to could be an indicator of something else. The only thing you can do is to repair it and hope for the best.

Note - obviously - you would want to have a 'wire burnt off' instead of all the other stuff, i.e. 'out or low' on refrigerant,' or a 'compressor mechanically/electrically wearing out.'

Hope this has helped.