[bize]

my window a/c unit will occasionally trip the breaker..not sure the btu's but its def close to the biggest for a 110 line. nothing else is being used on the line and its a 12g wire on a 20amp breaker. not a 220line...ive noticed that it tends to trip the breaker during what might be a more high usage time for electricity in the neighborhood if that means anything.. i assume its a bad idea to replace the 20amp breaker with a 30 for the time being? also it tends to trip the breaker when on the low setting quicker..i figured that would use less power than the others.. :huh:

 

[AandPDan]

Putting a 30 amp breaker in is a bad idea.

Is there anything else on the circuit or just this a/c?

 

[bize]

hey there are receptacles on the circuit however nothing is plugged into them except the a.c.. which is plugged in the last set of receptacles in the chain i believe

 

[Missouri Bound]

You could try replacing the breaker with a new 20 amp breaker. Breakers can weaken over time when a heavy load is on that circuit. How old is the panel / breaker?

 

[SD515]

and how old is the AC?

 

[jbfan]

Check all receptacles to make sure all connections are tight.

 

[bize]

the panel is old, im not sure how old exactly the breakers are because they were replaced about a year ago but with used ones.. new lines were ran to the box at that time.

the a.c. unit im gonna take a guess and say approx 12 y/o maybe a little more..

the connections at the receptacles should be good, they were just installed last year and give no other problems when used other than this a/c problem.

i ran the a/c last night for 3 hours on high with no trouble but like i said during the day or other times of possible high draw throughout the neighborhood it trips even on low after random periods of time starting with as little as ten minutes.

 

[matt1208]

Clean the unit the dirtier it is the higher the amp draw

 

[vsheetz]

Has this AC always occationally tripped the breaker - or has it been ok in the past and this is a new behavior?

 

[bize]

i keep the filter clean but have never cleaned the unit beyond that.

this is the second year of the unit. last year i believe it happened once or twice but not like it has this week during out current "heat wave"

 

[bize]

i have a killawatt meter i can use to monitor the unit if that helps in anyway

 

[AandPDan]

How many watts is it drawing on high and low?

What is the voltage?

 

[matt1208]

I would try cleaning the condenser and see what happens.

 

[bize]

im not home i will clean the condenser and also report back with the watts and the voltage draw when i return home.