Help! AC stopped working

[wavery]

Huh? A 12 ga. HD extension cord plugs into any 15-amp or 20-amp receptacle in your house. The only exception would be a cord rated for 20 amps. Then it would have a special plug that would only plug into 20-amp receptacles. But almost all 12 ga. HD extension cords I've seen are rated for 15 amps, and will plug into the regular receptacles in your house.

Edit: once I thought about it some more....does the a/c have a 20-amp plug on its cord? If so (I have never unplugged mine to see), then you are right. It won't work.

I forgot about that. The AC unit does come with a 20A plug on it.  I changed the plug on my AC unit to a HD 15A plug a couple years ago. I use it to plug directly into my Honda EU2000i generator and it works fine. I also plug it into a 15A outlet here in the apartment building when I working inside the PU with the AC on. I've left it running all day before and the plug doesn't even get warm.

[AZsix]

Kind of makes me glad we don't have a/c!

[Jamiek]

Kind of makes me glad we don't have a/c!

LOL,  we have sunk so much money in this pup in the last year.  Everything is always breaking or ripping.  The cause of finding that the ac does not work is we found a large nest of ants in the storage area.  Always something.

[WolfPack]

Hi  Jamiek i had the same problem my keep triping the breaker on the camper and the house so i got a 12g CORD and plug it in to the outlet in the shop it stop trimping the breaker in the camper. the a/c units take a lot of power to run. so try to make sure your on a 30 amp breaker at the house. or try and plug it in if you have a shop.

[PattieAM]

The way to check would be to plug your AC into a heavy duty fairly short 12-gauge extension cord and plug the cord into your house outlet - if it trips the house breaker - there's a problem with the AC.

From what I've read, when the AC compressor kicks in, it requires 20 amps, and a little less once the compressor is on and cooling - hence the need for a dedicated circuit.  Using less amperage for an extended period of time can damage the compressor, which can be a costly repair or replacement.

My PUP owners manual tells of the circuitry of the 110 volt alternating current and states that the 20amp circuits can be identified by a horizontal notch on one of the vertical receptical legs.  Also tells that the refrigerator compartment recepticals should not have any other appliances plugged into them.

You might find additional information at //www.airv.com (for the Carrier Air-V unit).

[wavery]

The way to check would be to plug your AC into a heavy duty fairly short 12-gauge extension cord and plug the cord into your house outlet - if it trips the house breaker - there's a problem with the AC.

From what I've read, when the AC compressor kicks in, it requires 20 amps, and a little less once the compressor is on and cooling - hence the need for a dedicated circuit.  Using less amperage for an extended period of time can damage the compressor, which can be a costly repair or replacement.

My PUP owners manual tells of the circuitry of the 110 volt alternating current and states that the 20amp circuits can be identified by a horizontal notch on one of the vertical receptical legs.  Also tells that the refrigerator compartment recepticals should not have any other appliances plugged into them.

You might find additional information at //www.airv.com (for the Carrier Air-V unit).

Your concept is close Pattie.

Actually it is the low voltage that causes compressor issues. Amps have little to do with it unless the AC draws more amps (while running) than the circuit breaker will handle. In that case, the circuit breaker will turn off. So it will either work or it won't. It doesn't cause stress on the compressor unless you keep trying to reset it over & over again.

When the compressor kicks in (or cycles) it takes nearly twice as many amps as it does while running. This is what is referred to as "Surge" amperage. A 20A circuit breaker (even a 15A) is deigned to handle that momentary surge and should not trip. I plug mine into a 15A circuit all the time without a problem.

When you put a volt meter on the outlet, it should read 110+Volts regardless of what the amperage of the outlet is.

If it reads less than 110V, that's when the compressor will have to work harder with less voltage and it will over-heat and shorten the life of the compressor substantially.

It's a good idea to bring a multi-meter camping with you, if you're going to run your AC. I have found CGs with under 100V, especially on hot days when everyone is running their AC and reducing the amount of supply voltage. It's also a good idea to check your home voltage.

As the voltage drops, the compressor demands more amps and could blow a breaker that would normally not blow. If the compressor runs off of 1500W it will demand 13.6A running and 27.3A surge at 110V. If the supply is only at 100V, it will demand 15A running or 30A surge. The higher amps mean higher watts, which generates more heat. The heat in turn makes the compressor work even harder (starting a vicious cycle) and that's what damages the compressor.

Also, the longer the extension cord, the thicker the wire must be. A 25' long 12G extension cord will be fine with your AC unit. There won't be enough voltage drop to even measure.

The wattage is what causes the heat. That is why you have a fan in your converter. It must control the heat or it will blow the breaker.

[PattieAM]

Do you have a heavy dute 12 guage extension cord?  Plug the AC into it, and the cord into your 30 amp home circuit and see if the AC unit will work.

There might be more information on the //www.airv.com site on the minimum amperage you need to operate your AC.  I've read where it has a dedicated 20amp circuit and to use less amperage will damage the compressor.

[Jamiek]

Do you have a heavy dute 12 guage extension cord?  Plug the AC into it, and the cord into your 30 amp home circuit and see if the AC unit will work.

There might be more information on the //www.airv.com site on the minimum amperage you need to operate your AC.  I've read where it has a dedicated 20amp circuit and to use less amperage will damage the compressor.

No, i dont have one, I tired to find one, but looks like they dont sell them, i have know where in my house to plug the other end of a 12 G extension cord.

[fallsrider]

Actually it is the low voltage that causes compressor issues...

Agreed.

...If it reads less than 110V, that's when the compressor will have to work harder with less voltage and it will over-heat and shorten the life of the compressor substantially...

Agreed again.

...It's a good idea to bring a multi-meter camping with you, if you're going to run your AC...

I don't currently do this, but you're right, it is a good idea.

...As the voltage drops, the compressor demands more amps and could blow a breaker that would normally not blow. If the compressor runs off of 1500W it will demand 13.6A running and 27.3A surge at 110V. If the supply is only at 100V, it will demand 15A running or 30A surge. The higher amps mean higher watts, which generates more heat. The heat in turn makes the compressor work even harder (starting a vicious cycle) and that's what damages the compressor...

I have to disagree here. VxA=W. If the voltage drops, the amps go up, but the watts stay the same. Amps cause heat. The more electrons that flow through any conductive material (which is amps), the more heat you have. I do agree that heat kills motors, compressors, etc. I'm not trying to be dogmatic about this. I could be wrong, but this is what I've always been taught.

[PattieAM]

Thanks Waverly - I probably could have gone into much more detail in my explanation of the need for amperage/voltage, but the original poster might not have wanted all of that (and you explained it much better than I could ever have done).  The point I was attempting to get across was that the
AC requires a 20amp dedicated circuit - less than that for an extended period could damage the AC unit.

As to the converter issue the OP has, it would seem that his 12-volt system might be overloading the converter....too much draw.

If, his PUP is plugged into a 15-amp circuit (and most of us have that as a standard outside outlet on our sticknbrick homes), the AC could be drawing more amperage (20-amp required), and the converter might be unable to draw against the amperage output to do it's job of converting the alternating current to direct current.

Again, I'm not at all good at explaining this, but do semi-understand the concept.  My advice to the original poster is to take the time to read his owners manual for the PUP, as well as the converter, and the air conditioner.