Air Conditioner making buzzing sound??
Question:Our 5 year old air conditioner is making a buzzing sound on the unit outside when it kicks on. It is still working find, cooling, cutting off when it should but this noise is LOUD! It sounds almost like I can hear the unit working fine, but there is this ancillary or additional buzzing sound too. What is this? Is it the motor or capacitor bad?
Answers:
the contactor thats turns the unit on and off is going bad and needs replaced.the main power wires coming into your outside unit hook directly to this.the yellow wire from your thermostat controls this.you can replace this yourself.the homeowner does not need a license to work on his own unit.this will be a30 or 40 amp, 24 volt, single or double pole contactor
it could possibly be a twig or stick or something that has fallen into the area where the fan is. is there a tree above it? or some source of debris that could have fallen into it? I'm pretty sure you need a license to take an outside unit apart, but if you could see what the fan was hitting, you might be able to remove it.
It could be the contactor. Shut the power off to the outside unit before opening the panel.
With the access panel off, look for the power cable coming into the unit. Follow the wires to the contractor. It is a 2" x 3" block that opens and closes when the thermostat calls for cooing. Look at the contact points for signs of burning, or if the thermostat is energized, it may be attempting to close the contactor. If the electromagnet coil is weakening, it may hum, or if the points are worn, it may have difficulty transmitting power. If you feel comfortable changing it out, get a new one and disconnect one wire at a time and hook it up to the new contactor with the wires in the exact same place. If you don't feel comfortable doing this, call a pro, as it could cause some major problems if rewired incorrectly.
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