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Rheem Package Heat Pump

5K views 4 replies 3 participants last post by  beenthere 
#1 ·
Rheem Package Heat Pump
Hi all,

I'm hoping someone can point me in the right direction here. I just finished installing a Rheem RQPM-AO24Jk single stage package heat pump w/ 10kw heat strip and have it connected to a Hunter 44860 thermostat. The unit seems to work fine in both heating and cooling mode except one problem. After cycling on for one period, it will not continue to heat. I'm not for sure if it does the same for cooling. Essentially, when I program the thermostat for either auto or heat mode the compressor and fan kick on and it heats the house up to the set point. However after 20-30 mins when the temprature has dropped enough to call for heat again the compressor kicks in(or at least I assume it does, the condensor fan is running) and the blower comes on, but no heat. I've tried letting it run for over 30 mins. and all it is doing is recirculating the air. The temp will continue to drop and not even the emergency heat will kick on. If I turn the system to off and come back several hours later. It will do the same thing, heat fine for one cycle and then no more heat. I can turn the tstat to emergency heat mode and the unit works fine. Turning on and off as neccessary to keep the house warm. It has me baffled. Could this possibly be something with the thermostat or is it something with the unit? Here is how I have the tstat wired.

Unit-----stat
Blue-----B
Y-------Y
BR------C
R------RC/R (I also have a jumper from here to Rh)
G-------G
W------W2 (I have a jumper from here to E)

I don't understand why it seems to work fine for one cycle and then nothing. I'll appreciate any advice.

Thanks!
 
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#2 ·
Does your unit have a diagnostic light blinking in the control panel, outside, when this problem occurs?

What is your temperature rise in emergency heat mode? ( To avoid measuring radiant heat measure the supply duct in a location in which the thermometer cannot "see" the heat strip.)

As Jay has already stated, Honeywell is a much better thermostat choice.
 
#4 ·
Thanks for the advice. I'm not sure on the diagnostic light, but I'll check it tomorrow. The unit seems to be working better this past day. It does seem to have a hard time keeping the house warm when it gets real cold. Last night it got down to about 25 and the unit was keeping the house about 68-69 but it was running continuously. I just let it run for about 4-5 hours, but it never shut off and I was afraid it might not be good for it to run that long without a break so I just switched it to emergency heat and it did fine, still ran alot, but would shut off for brief periods. I know when it gets real cold heat pumps lose their effectiveness, but shouldn't the emergency heat start on its own after so long of the compressor running and not being able to meet demand? Is it going to be bad if I just let the compressor handle it alone even if means it runs all night long?
 
#5 ·
The compressor is design to be able to run 24/7 with no harm to it.
Emergency heat is the heat you use when you turn the stat to emergency heat.

Aux heat(often the same strip heater as emergency heater) is what comes on when the temp in the house continues to drop. But is the thermostat that calls for it, not the outdoor unit(except during defrost).

A Good Honeywell thermostat might take care of that problem.
 
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