Condenser Fan Rotation Direction

[Jeffrey R. Pope]

I know it's wrong, but what are the ramifications when the condenser fan turning/rotating the wrong direction?

I've only come across this one other time in all my years. . .

[Michael Larson]

Originally Posted by jpope

I know it's wrong, but what are the ramifications when the condenser fan turning/rotating the wrong direction?

Reduced efficiency.

[Jeffrey R. Pope]

Thanks Mike, I figured that much.

[gbeaumont]

Originally Posted by jpope

I know it's wrong, but what are the ramifications when the condenser fan turning/rotating the wrong direction?

I've only come across this one other time in all my years. . .

Doesn't that mean that it's sucking heat into the house instead of blowing it out, if it's a heat pump it will be even worse in winter as it will suck in more cold.

From the " if you can't blind them with science, baffle them with BS school of philosophy"

I'd like to think this helps ......................... but we all know better

Regards

Gerry

[Bruce A. King]

I remember replacing one on my old house years ago, I used one of those universal motors that had lots of extra wires. It ran backwards until I swapped a few wires around.

[Doug Edwards]

A fan blade is designed to run in one direction, otherwise it only moves about half of the air it should be. That coupled with the dynamics of a condenser unit design, the ambient air is going to balloon or mushroom inside the unit rather than go out through the coils effectively. High heat build up, high head pressures, inefficient is an understatement. I am surprised it is still working, judging from the rusty casing on the condenser moter, it appears to have been there for a while. I had one lady build a wooden box around her outside unit with a few holes drilled in it and then could not make her understand why her Heat pump sucked (really really sucked) at cooling the house. Air flow is the critical factor in HVAC. The air is the medium that carries the heat away or brings it in, in the case of a heat pump. You start screwing with air flow, watch all the efficiency fall away. Homeowners never think of the HVAC until it stops working but it is the most abused / neglected piece of equipment in the home....and the most expensive.

[Jeffrey R. Pope]

It's not a heat-pump, but a relatively new unit manufactured in 2000 (house built in 2001) and wasn't cooling as well as I expected it should, with only about a 14 degree temp difference.

The "efficiency" issue was pretty obvious in my mind, but I also assumed there must have been a wiring "error."

I appreciate the input.

[David P. Valley]

Originally Posted by jpope

It's not a heat-pump, but a relatively new unit manufactured in 2000 (house built in 2001) and wasn't cooling as well as I expected it should, with only about a 14 degree temp difference.

The "efficiency" issue was pretty obvious in my mind, but I also assumed there must have been a wiring "error."

I appreciate the input.

Strange?

A 14 degree differential is fine in my book.

[Jeffrey R. Pope]

18 is generally were I expect to see it - especially with newer systems. I don't consider 14 to be a defect, just less than I would expect.

[Bruce A. King]

Did it use R410? Those were around in 2000 but were an upgrade.

Its not just the R410 that gives better temp diff's but the overall design of those units, they are awesome compared to the old 10 seer units.

[Jeffrey R. Pope]

I have no idea Bruce.

[gbeaumont]

Originally Posted by dvalley

Strange?

A 14 degree differential is fine in my book.

Hi Dave, you have to factor in location, and seasonal variations. down here (and California) and many of the southern states a 14 degree Delta T just doesn't overcome the homes cooling losses/ thermal gain, in NE you are mostly trying to cool down from high 80's at relatively low humidity, down here we are trying to cool from high 90's at 90%+ humidity. efficiency is king down here or the unit has to run all day.

Regards

Gerry

[David P. Valley]

Originally Posted by gbeaumont

Hi Dave, you have to factor in location, and seasonal variations. down here (and California) and many of the southern states a 14 degree Delta T just doesn't overcome the homes cooling losses/ thermal gain, in NE you are mostly trying to cool down from high 80's at relatively low humidity, down here we are trying to cool from high 90's at 90%+ humidity. efficiency is king down here or the unit has to run all day.

Regards

Gerry

Hmmmm. Thanks for the info. Gerry.

Ya, we don't get in the high 90's very often. Lately, we've been getting so much damn rain, it's been pissing me off.