How to Survive an "HVAC Crash"

[mrrsm]

If you are suddenly faced with a Home HVAC Failure as I have been dealing with over the last few days and decide to get one of those LG Brand 7,000-10,000 BTU Roll-Around AC Units… You can avoid the impossibility of trying to set the Damned Thing up with just the ordinary Black or White Vinyl Tubing around Coiled Wire Non-Insulated Flexible Vent Hosing; supposedly designed to carry the Heated Air from the 6” Condensing Compressor Pipe to the Outside World...only to realize that the Heat Load it carries is TOO HUGE . This touted Vent Pipe-Hose-Tubing Duct is worthless and will wind up radiating all of that heat energy ypu are trying to displacefrom inside the chosen cooled down room ....right back into that very room where that LG ‘Ice Cold R2D2’ Portable AC Unit is trying desperately to cool your bedroom or sitting room down to a livable comfort level.

What to do about this? The solution(s) are easy and surprisingly inexpensive, too. Besides having the LG Roll-Around AC Unit… You’ll need a 6” Wide Flexible, Insulated Dual Layer Vent Tube Duct that is 12’ Long and fitted with a Tough Outer Aluminum Mylar Plastic layer covering an inner layer of Pink Fibre-Glas Insulation having an R-8 Insulation Rating. Along with this remarkable Hosing/Tube/Duct… you’ll need a packet-pair of S/S 6” OD Hose Clamps, a 6” Round Galvanized Steel “Top Hat” HVAC Flanged Duct Adapter ...and a few rolls of your choice of Nashua 11 Mil HVAC Aluminum “Gummy” Tape AND Nylon Re-Enforced Aluminum Tape:

LG Portable AC Unit on Wheels:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ZUX6FX8/?tag=gmtnation-20

Insulated Flex-Hose:

https://www.amazon.com/Speedi-Products-FD-12R8-06-Insulated-Metalized/dp/B0085UZRGY/ref=sr_1_3?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1525225904&sr=1-3&keywords=6"+insulated+flexible+duct

“Top Hat” HVAC Flanged Duct Adapter:

https://www.amazon.com/Ideal-Air-736458-Duct-Collar-Tight/dp/B0058IUUDG/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1525226263&sr=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=hvac+6"+flange+duct+adapter

Pair of 6” S/S Duct Clamps:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008HV5WPW/?tag=gmtnation-20

Choose from among these Nashua Aluminum and Sealant Tape Products:

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias=industrial&field-keywords=nashua+aluminum+duct+tape&rh=n:16310091,k:nashua+aluminum+duct+tape

In my situation, ‘The Lil’ Woman’ demanded to have the MBR isolated from this Hellish Heat and that meant that the only practical access would be to guide the Heated Air OUT through the Bathroom Window. So I designed a 24” X 8” piece of Wood Ply-Panel Board with a roughly centered 6” Diameter hole created with a Pencil Scribed center. After using a Skilsaw to carve out the middle of it… I inserted the special 6” Wide ”Top Hat” shaped Hose-Tube Duct Flange Adapter through the hole. Securing this thing was just a matter of using the Nashua Insulated tape in reinforcing layers and cut into measured strips to tape all around the wood panel and secure the apparatus quite snugly atop the Window Sill and keeping it very flush with the Aluminum Window Frame.

It takes a bit of doing to slide the loose ends of the rather bulky insulated hose onto the “Top Hat” Window Exit Flange pipe extensions and to the Condenser Coil Exit Air Flange on the back of the LG AC Unit… but by slightly tightening down the 6” S/S Hose Clamps and moving to positions of about 3" to 4" down the length of the flex-tube end(s) and then pulling on BOTH the inner and outer sections at the same time, then the flexible tube-hose duct will slide onto the 6" Flange Adapters and behave like you are pulling on a pair of tight socks over the stanchion pipe ends. Once the clamps are snugged down well... the Hose ends will remain attached. Prior to securing those two S/S Clamps, it will help to move the flexible, insulated hose around first to ensure that there are NO KINKS in it to block the exiting heated air stream.

After that… Turn on the Portable Roll-Around LG A/C Unit and then head outside to check on and ensure that the sweltering air stream that should be leaving that HVAC “High Hat” flange really is doing so… with a good volume of heated air moving at a good velocity as well. There is no reason to remove the BR Window Screen and invite the invasion of Mosquitoes that will keep trying to enter through the new window vent. Just be certain to double check that all of the connections and taping points previously mentioned are intact and advise ‘The Lil’ Woman’ to avoid moving “R2D2” around too much ...as she might wind up pulling the hose ends off of their two flange connections if she gets too enthusiastic when rolling the thing around.

All of this effort will pay off by buying you some time once you realize that for a complete replacement and upgrade from an R-22 System over to an R-410A System… either as a Straight Cool System or via a Heat Pump System… it will run into some serious money of at least $5,000 to $7,000.00. This "Cool Oasis" will give you the chance to shop around for a decent company to do this expensive R&R and try to get the very best deal ...without all of the usual attendant drama and desperation that the Hellish Heat and discomfort can drive you towards.

One last observation is that it only took me about 30 Minutes to do all of this set-up work and the results were not only immediate and gratifyingly “cool”… but useful to the extent that after the Main HVAC Repairs are finally completed and after pulling the Nashua Tape from around all of this “Window Dressing”…. I can easily store these very useful HVAC Items ...should the need arise in the future. I've had this Portable LG Unit for quite a few years now...and in addition to now having a Gas/Propane Powered Electric Generator... should we lose power during the Hurricane Season,.. At least I know that I can isolate the one room in the house and also keep a small refrigerator that will be stocked and stay cool and comfortable... no matter WHAT happens!

 

[mrrsm]

For being as good a Rescue Device as the "R2D2" LG Roll-Around A/C Unit has proven to be... it comes with another issue that has to be dealt with in terms of just how much and how quickly the moisture and humidity in the air stream will collect down inside of the Condensate Drain Pain. For those of us living down in Florida... normally functioning HVAC house units can condition the air in our homes to the tune of watching Gallons of that Cold Water Drip literally pouring out of the collection PVC piping to the outside of the house on particularly hot and humid days... like it is down here right now, for instance. Without having some kind of A/C ... sweat soaks your clothes so quickly that the nature and outlines of human discomfort caused by this terrible excess of humidity inside of a house at 90 Degrees ambient quickly becomes crystal clear.

The "R2D2" LG Unit has proven to be just as efficient in stealing all of that moisture out of the air in our bedroom, but it rapidly settles down into a very small collection pan in the bottom of the unit and if not attended to several times a day... the pan will overflow and spill out onto the floor... or worse yet... onto the carpet. In the present situation with on-going A/C repairs... this translates into having to open the drain cap and pull out the Rubber Stopper inside and then manually tip the unit on its wheels backwards just enough to get all of the cold water to pour out from down inside there onto some towels ... something akin to wrangling with a Two Year Old in the throws of a Temper Tantrum at The Mall... and a problem of having to repeat this difficult procedure many times each day.

The solution for THIS part of the problem comes from my recent purchase-review here of a MityVac 7400 Hand Vacuum Pump that worked swimmingly well AFTER I discovered that the Rubber Stopper Plug in the Condensate Pan shows only a partial hole for the insertion of a Clear Small Plastic Drain Line ...and that Stopper MUST be completely drilled all the way through so the Plastic Tube will pass far enough inside to reach the collecting condensate.

The other trick here is to first cut off a 3" length from the longer Larger Clear Plastic Suction Line and THEN insert the rubber adapter onto the short end of it... and plug the thinner tube in the other side of the rubber hose adapter. Doing this causes it to reduce the volume of air present inside of these tubes and causes a vacuum to form much more quickly once you start working the Pump Handle up and down.

After that... Prior to starting to hand pump the device... it is just a matter of making certain that the Odd Device (not intuitive) used to set the "Vacuum" setting is in the proper position instead of it being on the "Pressurize" position. You will be amazed how much Cold Condensate will get vacuumed into the 1.7 Gallon MityVac Tank! So until I have sorted out the HVAC repairs.... The LG "R2D2" A/C Unit AND the MityVac "C3PO" will have to work together side-by-side to allow us to relax, watch TV and eventually ...get a Good Night's Sleep.

THIS version of the MityVac I obrtained is not exactly the same as mine is... but it is even less expensive than the one I recently purchased on sale:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000JFJM14/?tag=gmtnation-20

 

[Daniel644]

we've got 3 of them at the house I work out of, his central unit took a dump and the A/C guys we have do all our houses had a used unit sitting around that was WAY TO SMALL for his house but they hooked it up anyway and so he went out and bought several of the LG units and put one on every level of the house, he is planning to replace teh central at some point and will be doing a series of Mini-split units around the house and a medium sized unit to replace the existing central that will then only service the main level of the house.

 

[mrrsm]

After the angst of trying to pick "Just The Right Size HVAC Company" I chose the novel idea of using Google Maps to look at the location images of a half-dozen local companies; some were too small... some too large... and finally found "Advanced Cooling Systems, Inc" and just drove out to the local business site in Clearwater. The entire staff were unbelievable... The Head Sales Manager himself offered to come out immediately for the site inspection after I spent 30 minutes discussing my situation with his Service Manager. These Guys were AWESOME! They showed up on time the following morning to rip out my old system and install a Trane XR-15 4 Ton 15 SEER Heat Pump which included the Trane TEM6AOC48 Air Handler and a New Copper Line Set to handle the higher refrigerant pressures of R-410A.

My Low Roof Angle proved to be a daunting challenge for this install... but they threw a team of first three ...then five Techs in total at the situation in order to get everything done right. This TRANE equipment will not come cheap... but you WILL get a very Big Bang for your Buck from these folks! The one most important personal consideration was that my wife has been ill and did not want anyone coming into the house and so I was pleasantly surprised to find all of the team VERY accommodating to this matter ...and even allowed me to R&R the House Thermostat myself. I could not believe how well trained these guys were and how they worked cheerfully together under the very worst of conditions. I would Highly Recommend this company over any others for your West Coast of Florida HVAC needs! Our home now feels So Cool, So Dry and So Very Comfortable ...and that Trane Condensor Unit is as quiet as a Church Mouse!

 

[mrrsm]

The Irony involved in this video of the obvious Cold... the newly falling Snow and the famous Trane Advertisement Slogan "NOTHING ...Stops a TRANE..." will not fail to amuse you: