Click for Ocean Alexander Click for Walker Click for Furuno Click for Cross Click for Nordhavn

a/c problems

Discussion in 'Carver Yacht' started by lake girl, Aug 6, 2012.

You need to be registered and signed in to view this content.
  1. lake girl, Aug 6, 2012
    #1
    lake girl

    lake girl New Member

    Joined:
    Aug 6, 2012
    Messages:
    1
    Location:
    kentucky lake
    having owned 7 boats and this one being a 4207 carver i have repaired many problems but this one has me stumped.the problem is the a/c units it has vector compact units aft and v berth are 9000 btu mid is 16000 btu we were going out saturday i started the gen set turned on the air they came on for a minute then i heard a click which was the compressor kicking out and got a code of hpf on the mid controller so from past expeirience i thought the sea strainer was clogged not the case so i tried it again and was sitting by the electrical control panel and wathed it when it kicked off the amp guage jumped to 50 amps so i shut the gen set off plugged shore power back in it did the same thing so i ran a water hose thru the window straight to the a/c manifold and it worked fine all night so i determined it was something to do with the pump ,had an extra one installed it tried it again it did the same thing does any one know doe the wiring from the pump run to some juntion box or what woud be causeing such a jump in the amps when the pump is in line
  2. Pascal, Aug 6, 2012
    #2
    Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 29, 2008
    Messages:
    8,167
    Location:
    Miami, FL
    50 amps, unless temporary when the compressors kicks in, should trip the breaker. if both compressors come on at the same time, plus the pump, a short spike to 50amp isn't necessarily abnormal, as long as it's just a short spike.

    first thing to check is the pump. try to temporarily connect it to a 120v source and see if it works. then check the wiring... there should be a box with triggers to activate the pump when one of the compressor kicks in.
  3. Capt J, Aug 6, 2012
    #3
    Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2005
    Messages:
    14,435
    Location:
    Fort Lauderdale
    Well, it's either the pump or waterflow. I would take the hose off of the a/c pump and see how much waterflow you have. It's quite possible you have a bag stuck on the water intake or mussels growing on the inside of the through hull, or the pump itself is bad, also check to see if you have any places the system could be sucking air on the intake side of the pump. It's one of the three. How much discharge do you have coming out of the side of the boat when the a/c's are running. In saltwater, we only get 2-3 years out of an a/c pump generally, they should last longer in freshwater.
  4. Pascal, Aug 6, 2012
    #4
    Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 29, 2008
    Messages:
    8,167
    Location:
    Miami, FL
    I ve had numerous plastic bags stuck on the TH over the years (usually on a hot Sunday early in the morning when the last thing you want to do is get out of bed and go under the boat..) and they ve never resulted in high amperage.

    What s tricky about plastic bags is that once the pump shuts down they let one water in so when you open the strainer and seacock you think it s all clear. Then under suction they block flow again.

    As to pumps, I ve never gotten more than 2 to 3 years on Cruisair branded pumps but at least 2 to 3 times that with march.
  5. Waterhog, Aug 6, 2012
    #5
    Waterhog

    Waterhog New Member

    Joined:
    Jun 11, 2012
    Messages:
    13
    Location:
    Barkley/ Kentucky Lake
    If the AC worked with the hose directly attached - makes me wonder where the water is using the pump. Unhook hose to ac and see how much water is being delivered to the ac unit. I had to replace a hose from the manifold to my vberth unit. I kept getting the high pressure fault as well.
  6. jhall767, Aug 7, 2012
    #6
    jhall767

    jhall767 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 14, 2010
    Messages:
    320
    Location:
    Middle River MD
    Sounds like there is a piece of plastic or other obstruction in the AC water line. A trapped piece of debris can do the same thing.

    Slightly different problem but I'm having a low flow issue with one of my condensers. I'm getting 20F rise from intake to discharge. The other unit on the same water pump is seeing about 9F rise and is cooling better. Any suggestions as to what to flush it with. I've heard muriatic acid but also barnacle buster. I've used the acid in masonry work but I'm leaning towards the less dangerous barnacle buster chemicals. The engine room is tight and the fluid would be under pressure.

    Any suggestions?