cruise air trouble starting

[magnawake]

I was wondering why one of my cruise air unit is having trouble starting. I hear it start, then 2 sec later stop. Then it tries again, then stops. On, off, on, off. I have a Honeywell Thermostat that seems to be original. Sometimes I can mess with the control on the top and it will start and stay running. It doesnt do this all the time, but it bothers me that something might be wrong. Do yall think it might be the old thermostat or the start capacitor on the compressor? Or something else?

 

[MikeP]

"Do yall think it might be the old thermostat or the start capacitor on the compressor? Or something else?"

Could be any of those!

I had one that exhibited those symptoms and it turned out to be the connection where the main power wiring attached to the compressor. The spade connector was badly burned/loose and would make intermittent contact - sometimes it would start/run just fine, other times not. I cut the wire back to nice clean copper and installed new connectors and that solved the problem.

Connections are always the first of the "usual suspects"...

 

[Canuck Dennis]

I had a poor connection on one of my Honeywell controls, acted just like that, remove it and chack the wires, easy fix if damaged.

 

[SKYCHENEY]

Turn off the power before you pull that Honeywell control. It has line voltage running through it.

 

[eze2bme]

I had that happen also after the AC guys charged the freon too much. Too high a pressure caused mine to try to start, then stop also - over and over.

 

[novusvita]

Both low freon levels and high freon levels have done the same thing on mine.

 

[magnawake]

I had a poor connection on one of my Honeywell controls, acted just like that, remove it and chack the wires, easy fix if damaged.

I just checked the wiring this afternoon. I couldnt find any loose wires. It was real dusty though. Next I'll check the freon charge. I hope thats the culpret. That should be an easy fix. Now to find someone with gages.....And how many pounds charge.

 

[eze2bme]

Pate - this is from my Cruisair manual. Keep in mind that these are suggested numbers and each system is slightly different. For example, if I charge my salon unit using this table it is overcharged and will shut down and re-start just as yours is doing - so sort of trial and error according to my HVAC tech. Good luck.

 

[utspak]

I just had the same trouble this summer. The fix was easy.
1. got this stuff that stopped any freon leak added the whole can and repressurized with freon
2. The seawater was not bleed properly and was not getting proper cooling.

After these two item fixed it has worked beautifully.

Stuart

 

[magnawake]

Well, the dang thing wont even run now. I think it must be low on juice. It's been getting worse every week now that I think about it. I called a A/C guy just a short time ago. I am working 12 hrs/day now and dont have a spare minute to do anything. The guy charges $90/hr with a 1 1/2 hr minimun and $20 trip charge. Dang !!! I was impressed though talking to him on the phone. I told him I had Honeywell thermostats and he said, "what do you have a 1980's Hatteras 42-43'. Yep. He nailed it. He must know his stuff.

 

[Finalee]

I carry gauges and a 30 lb can of r22 on the boat. Could have fixed you up if it was acting up last month. Maybe the tech reads the Hatteras forum.

 

[Canuck Dennis]

Ditto to the above, if you are going to keep boating with a/c units, it's worth the $$ to carry the stuff and and the gauges, gauges are cheap, 50.00 and R22 is about 10.00 Lb wholesale. also good to source a good vac. pump .

 

[GJH]

Well, the dang thing wont even run now. I think it must be low on juice. It's been getting worse every week now that I think about it. I called a A/C guy just a short time ago. I am working 12 hrs/day now and dont have a spare minute to do anything. The guy charges $90/hr with a 1 1/2 hr minimun and $20 trip charge. Dang !!! I was impressed though talking to him on the phone. I told him I had Honeywell thermostats and he said, "what do you have a 1980's Hatteras 42-43'. Yep. He nailed it. He must know his stuff.

Pate, who did you talk to. In my opinion The Man around here is Danny Martin (Martin's Marine Service (910-799-9362) over in Wilmington. He is in MHC regularly and would bunch jobs together here so no trip charge. If it was him I don't remember his rate being that high but it's been about a year since I used him and he is worth it regardless. He works quickly, no BS and really knows his stuff and doesn't rip you off on parts (yes, higher than if you hunted them down yourself on the net, but not eye-wateringly so). Cheaper than a mediocre tech who takes longer and maybe gets it right. He was a teacher of HVAC and refrigeration at the community college so he is excellent at educating you as to what the issue is and how things work. Other than working on the air/con system, he saved me from having to replace our big old Sub Zero side by side by inexpensively converting it to R414b "Hot Shot" from R12 including a new evaporator.

Another great guy is Bert Ferebee out of New Bern, who I know does some work on the ferries down there now and then. 252-670-1009. Many of the same attributes as Danny and worked at Hatteras for a long time so knows the boats well.

 

[magnawake]

I called Martins marine A/C service because someone else recommended him last night. He must have a big following. Just by talking to him I knew he was good. They also charge 70 something for freon. Man, thats a gas.....He will show up tomorrow afternoon. I have been thinking about buying a set of gages for a long time. I knew it was going to bite me. Thanks for all the info.

 

[carolinacoast]

Jason is one of His techs, and very skilled. We use them when in NC. Happy customer. ditto what George said.

 

[SeaWhisper]

Pate, who did you talk to. In my opinion The Man around here is Danny Martin (Martin's Marine Service (910-799-9362) over in Wilmington. He is in MHC regularly and would bunch jobs together here so no trip charge. If it was him I don't remember his rate being that high but it's been about a year since I used him and he is worth it regardless. He works quickly, no BS and really knows his stuff and doesn't rip you off on parts (yes, higher than if you hunted them down yourself on the net, but not eye-wateringly so). Cheaper than a mediocre tech who takes longer and maybe gets it right. He was a teacher of HVAC and refrigeration at the community college so he is excellent at educating you as to what the issue is and how things work. Other than working on the air/con system, he saved me from having to replace our big old Sub Zero side by side by inexpensively converting it to R414b "Hot Shot" from R12 including a new evaporator.

Another great guy is Bert Ferebee out of New Bern, who I know does some work on the ferries down there now and then. 252-670-1009. Many of the same attributes as Danny and worked at Hatteras for a long time so knows the boats well.

Pate,

Agree with George! I have used Danny several times myself. Does great work and fair.

 

[magnawake]

Well, Danny's crew came over yesterday. Good news, bad news......The good news, everything is running fine. No leaks, pressure is fine, Compressor is OK. Well, dang, whats the problem. There's got to be something wrong. When he was here it ran without failure. There must be a loose wire somewhere. I called the mechanic back and said just turn it on and sit and watch TV for a while, it will cut out. Well, tonight I've been running it since 7:20 pm when I got home from work and its been running great, cycling back and forth like normal. Bad news is that its going to be bear finding the loose wire. Geee, nothing is easy on a boat. It's really a challenge.