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Air Conditioner or Heat Pump Compressor & Condenser Installation Errors
- INSTALLATION ERRORS, COMPRESSORS - Air conditioner compressor installation errors such as improper location or out of level
- Air conditioner compressor defect diagnosis
- Air conditioning refrigerant line defects
- Air conditioning refrigerant piping distances and diameters required
- Allowable distances between air conditioning compressor and air handler
- Effects on an A/C or heat pump compressor that is out of level - support pads and leveling the unit
- CLEARANCE DISTANCE, HVAC - separate article
- Questions & Answers about installing air conditioners and heat pumps: clearances, distances, leveling requirements
- References
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A/C or heat pump compressor/condenser unit installation mistakes: this air conditioning repair article discusses the
installation errors in air conditioning compressor and condensing units such as improper location, blocked air flow, out of level, or not properly supported. We discuss required equipment clearance distances, refrigerant line piping support and routing, and problems with shrubbery or other air flow blockages that can cause overheating, higher operating costs, and reduced compressor motor life.
Green links show where you are. © Copyright 2013 InspectAPedia.com, All Rights Reserved. Author Daniel Friedman.
Air Conditioning or Heat Pump Compressor / Condenser Unit Installation Errors & Damage
A/C and heat pump compressor/condenser installation, location, and maintenance tips provided here include attention to compressor support
pads and avoiding air conditioning refrigerant leaks are addressed.
If readers return to the first chapter or view the A/C chapter index, the major components of an air conditioning system are
described, sketches and photographs are provided, and common defects for each component are listed along with visual or other clues that may
suggest a problem or probable failure of A/C components.
Sketch at left provided courtesy of Carson Dunlop Associates.
If your air conditioning or heat pump system has lost its cooling capacity or won't start see REPAIR GUIDE for AIR CONDITIONERS. See How to determine the cooling capacity of air conditioning equipment if the system seems to be working but is inadequate to cool your building.
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Air Conditioning Compressor Location Problems
Inadequate air circulation clearance around an air conditioner compressor/condenser unit
Typical outside air-cooled A/C compressors require a minimal clearance around the unit
to provide adequate air flow so that the condenser coils will be cooled efficiently. Both of the
air conditioning installations shown here are tipping and the right hand one was actually leaning on the house wall!
 Air conditioning compressor/condenser units mounted too close to a wall, surrounded by shrubs, or multiple units located too closely
together may not receive enough cool air flow to function properly. The result can be
a shorter compressor life (expensive) and/or less efficient cooling operation (higher
operation costs).
These four air conditioner compressors were found jammed into a wall niche along a street in Queretero, Mexico. These units may have a short life before needing replacement.
Where there simply is not adequate space to provide proper air circulation around an air conditioning compressor or multiple compressors, it may be a good idea to let the building owner know that the units won't have a long life.
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Air Conditioner Compressor/Condenser Units Overgrown with Shrubbery
This collection of air conditioning compressors are too many too close together - they will be fighting for cooling air
around the condenser unit, increasing operating cost and shortening air conditioner compressor life.
Adding to this scene
is the overgrowth of shrubs along the compressor/condenser units. The owner didn't want to see these "ugly" devices but
she should have kept the plants trimmed off of the units themselves to allow airflow. The shade was a great idea however, so
long as these are just air conditioning units and not heat pumps that want warmth in winter.
One of our clients was "punished" by their air conditioner installer when she said that she didn't want to see or hear
the compressor/condenser units, and when she was installing nine of them at her large home. The installer built a rack
allowing the units to be stacked on top of one another, three across and three high, with very little air space between.
Then the installer put up a stockade fence just a few inches away from the compressor/condenser units. They were
hard to see, it was true, and hard to service. But as the property manager confirmed, they were having to replace
several of these units every few years. I believe it was because the units ran excessively hot all the time, lacking
adequate air and clearance. Photo withheld for privacy.
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Air Conditioner Refrigerant Line Defects
Please see our detailed article about refrigerant line piping installation, inspection, defects, repairs, found at REFRIGERANT PIPING & DISTANCES. Excerpts below:
Refrigerant Line Mounting Requirements
 Absence of slack in the coolant lines at the compressor units can cause leaks: should the compressor move, perhaps because
its supporting pads settle, there will be likely leaks at these lines. You should review
this question with your HVAC service person. This item may be deferred until next maintenance or service.
Protection from mechanical damage on all refrigerant lines is important to prevent leaks.
CarsonDunlop Associates' sketch (left) shows the indoor air handler unit, not the outside compressor/condenser unit, but the illustration makes clear that the refrigerant piping loop needs to be properly placed and the piping slope should be downwards from the evaporator unit towards the compressor/condenser unit.
Also, referring lines should not be buried underground. Details are at REFRIGERANT PIPING & DISTANCES.
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Refrigerant Line Insulation Requirements
Missing insulation on the refrigerant lines, particularly on the larger suction line, will cause condensation and
drips from the lines in humid areas. I've seen very costly building damage where lines were not properly insulated indoors: condensate
drips wet gypsum board walls, leading to a costly mold remediation project.
Missing insulation on the refrigerant piping also probably increases system operating
cost.
Details are at REFRIGERANT PIPING & DISTANCES and at REFRIGERANT PIPING INSULATION.
Minimum Clearance Distances from Building Walls, Shrubs, Other Equipment
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Blocking air flow through the outdoor A/C or heat pump compressor/condenser unit is a really bad idea that shortens equipment life (as the equipment runs hotter) and increases system operasting costs (for the same reason - hotter opeating temperature means lower efficiency during the cooling season).
Air conditioning or heat pump compressor/condenser units mounted too close to a wall, surrounded by shrubs, or multiple units located too closely
together will probably not receive enough cool air flow to function properly. And even worse, compressor/condenser units that are too close together not only have to fight for their incoming cooling air, but they may veed hot exhaust air to one another, increasing their operating temperatures still further.
- Details about the recommended clearance distances for A/C or heat pump compressor/condenser outdoor units are found at CLEARANCE DISTANCE, HVAC
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Air Conditioning Compressor/Condenser Unit Support Pads - Leveling Requirements for Compressor/Condenser Units
 Outside A/C compressors are typically supported on
a concrete pad, concrete blocks, or a vinyl pad such as the one shown in the photo at page top.
The air conditioner compressor support pad should be level and secure against movement.
Compressors which are badly out of level may fail to function properly and need adjustment.
Tipping and moving compressors can also cause can cause leaks in refrigerant lines, leading
to costly air conditioning service calls to evacuate and recharge the system after repairing the
refrigerant leak.
Do not try to move your A/C compressor yourself as you might cause a refrigerant leak
or may otherwise damage the equipment.
Ask your A/C service technician to evaluate the effects of
any out-of-level conditions of the compressor as well as to comment on the available slack in
the refrigerant lines that may be needed to reposition the unit.
For slightly-tipped air conditioning compressors we
generally leave them alone but we add support as needed to avoid further movement.
Tipped or leaning air conditioner compressor/condenser units
Tipping or leaning air conditioner compressors can lead to so much movement that the refrigerant lines crack and leak, leading
to loss of cooling ability. In extreme cases, a tipped condenser unit may fail to operate properly. In the first photo above
the compressor is leaning and creeping away from the building and has pulled its connecting wiring and refrigerant line taut.
I expect a problem soon with this unit. In the second photo everything looks awful: the two compressors are too close together
and too close to the building wall for adequate air circulation, especially in the larger rear unit in the photo. The safety
electrical switch for the air conditioner is falling off of the wall, and the rear unit is sliding off of its support pad. This
was a poor air conditioning system installation.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about compressor condensing coil Installation, Location, & Leveling Requirements
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Question:
My compressor is out of level
My A/C compressor is out of level just slightly - is that going to make trouble? - Dimc
Reply:
Dlmc: - requirement to level the air conditioning or heat pump compressor -
Yes the compressor should be level. That detail is found in the installation instructions for air conditioning and heat pump compressors.
Slightly out of level is unlikely to affect operation, but if you consider that the condenser coil expects to receive high temperature, high pressure refrigerant gas that it then cools to a liquid refrigerant, and that the liquid refrigerant needs to flow out of the condensing coil into the refrigerant line, a significant tip out of level may interfere with refrigerant flow and thus system operation.
Also a unit that is out of level and also not secured to a mounting pad may creep due to equipment vibration, risking development of a leak in the refrigerant lines or a torn electrical connection.
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Technical Reviewers & References
Related Topics, found near the top of this page suggest articles closely related to this one.
Click to Show or Hide Citations & References
 Carson, Dunlop & Associates Ltd., 120 Carlton Street Suite 407, Toronto ON M5A 4K2. (416) 964-9415 1-800-268-7070 info@carsondunlop.com. The firm provides professional home inspection services & home inspection education & publications. Alan Carson is a past president of ASHI, the American Society of Home Inspectors. Thanks to Alan Carson and Bob Dunlop, for permission for InspectAPedia to use text excerpts from The Home Reference Book & illustrations from The Illustrated Home. Carson Dunlop Associates' home inspection education products include
- The ASHI-adopted Home Inspection Training Program, and Commercial Building Inspection Courses
- The Home Inspection Home Study Course, and publications such as
- The Home Reference Book, a reference & inspection report product for building owners & inspectors.
Special Offer: Carson Dunlop Associates offers InspectAPedia readers in the U.S.A. a ten percent discount on any number of copies of the Home Reference Book purchased as a single order. Just enter HRBUS10 in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space. Note: InspectAPedia.com ® editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author.
- The Home Reference eBook, an electronic version for PCs, the iPad, iPhone, & Android smart phones
- Home Inspection Report writing materials, including the Horizon Software System that manages business operations, scheduling, & inspection report writing using Carson Dunlop's knowledge base & color images. The Horizon system runs on always-available cloud-based software for office computers, laptops, tablets, iPad, Android, & other smartphones.
- The Illustrated Home illustrates construction details and building components, a reference for owners & inspectors
- Thanks to Scott at SJM Inspect for suggesting the EPA air conditioning and IAQ document and for technical editing remarks regarding our air conditioning website,
SJM Inspection Service LLC, serves the entire state of CT, sjminspect.com 203-543-0447 or 203-877-4774
5/16/07
- Thanks to Diaz, Domingo I. CIV NAVAIR Bldg.2118, rm. 131: domingo.diaz@navy.mil
- Ming Diaz, Great Falls, MD for editing help with the text about discharging air conditioning compressor capacitors - 3/07 DF]
- Thanks to reader (Anon) for discussing the allowable distance between air conditioner compressor and a building or from the air handler - July 2010
- ASHRAE Handbook Refrigeration, Chapter 2, 2006. © American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc., www.ashrae.org
- Refrigerant Piping Design Guide, McQuay Corporation, Americans HQ: 13600 Industrial Park Blvd., Minneapolis, Minnesota 55441, 800-432-1342 (Toll Free)
763-553-5330 (Direct), 763-553-5177 (Fax). Web search 07/15/2010 original source: http://www.mcquay.com/mcquaybiz/literature/lit_systems/AppGuide/AG_31-011_120407.pdf - quoting:
McQuay International delivers engineered, flexible solutions for commercial, industrial and institutional HVAC requirements with reliable products, knowledgeable applications expertise and responsive support. As part of Daikin Industries, a Fortune 1000 company, McQuay is the second largest air conditioning, heating, ventilating and refrigeration company in the world.
Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair
 The Home Reference Book - the Encyclopedia of Homes, Carson Dunlop & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 25th Ed., 2012, is a bound volume of more than 450 illustrated pages that assist home inspectors and home owners in the inspection and detection of problems on buildings. The text is intended as a reference guide to help building owners operate and maintain their home effectively. Field inspection worksheets are included at the back of the volume. Special Offer: For a 10% discount on any number of copies of the Home Reference Book purchased as a single order. Enter INSPECTAHRB in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space. InspectAPedia.com editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author.
Or choose the The Home Reference eBook for PCs, Macs, Kindle, iPad, iPhone, or Android Smart Phones. Special Offer: For a 5% discount on any number of copies of the Home Reference eBook purchased as a single order. Enter INSPECTAEHRB in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space.
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- Carson Dunlop, Associates, Toronto, have provided us with (and we recommend) Carson Dunlop Weldon & Associates' Technical Reference Guide to manufacturer's model and serial number information for heating and cooling equipment
Special Offer: Carson Dunlop Associates offers InspectAPedia readers in the U.S.A. a 5% discount on any number of copies of the Technical Reference Guide purchased as a single order. Just enter INSPECTATRG in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space.
- Complete List of Air Conditioning & Heat Pump Design, Inspection, Repair Books at the InspectAPedia Bookstore.
- Modern Refrigeration and Air Conditioning, A. D. Althouse, C.H. Turnquist, A. Bracciano, Goodheart-Willcox Co., 1982
- Principles of Refrigeration, R. Warren Marsh, C. Thomas Olivo, Delmar Publishers, 1979
- "Air Conditioning & Refrigeration I & II", BOCES Education, Warren Hilliard (instructor), Poughkeepsie, New York, May - July 1982, [classroom notes from air conditioning and refrigeration maintenance and repair course attended by the website author]
- Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Technology, 5th Ed., William C. Whitman, William M. Johnson, John Tomczyk, Cengage Learning, 2005, ISBN 1401837654, 9781401837655 1324 pages
 Air Conditioning SEER - New DOE Air Conditioner and Heat Pump Efficiency Standard- Asbestos HVAC Ducts and Flues field identification photos and guide
- Fiberglass: Indoor Air Quality Investigations: Fiberglass in Indoor Air, HVAC ducts, and Building Insulation
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