Window air conditioner suddenly randomly tripping circuit breaker July 9, 2014   Subscribe We have a window A/C unit that is about three years old. Since we bought it, it has worked flawlessly to cool our bedroom for the few weeks a year that we need it... until now. We put it back in the window last Wednesday, and it worked fine until Monday evening. Now, seemingly without rhyme or reason, but usually (of course) in the middle of the night, it will trip the circuit breaker.Breakers are a safety device. It is designed to protect not only the equipment but the wiring and the house as well. So when it trips, there is a reason and it should be taken seriously. One very common cause for breakers to trip are loose electrical connections and can easily be corrected by tightening them. Try one time to reset it by turning it to the “off” position and then back to the “on” position. Do not just keep resetting it and try to ignore the situation. It is trying to tell you something.

And while it may be just a weak breaker or the result of a thunderstorm, always remember that you are dealing with high voltage, high amperage and possibly high temperatures which can cause serious damage to life and property. Note that breakers should not feel hot to the touch. If it is hot, it indicates a problem and not to be ignored. For example, if when you reset it, it immediately trips, that is usually indicative of a direct short. Do not even try to reset the breaker again. Sometimes the breaker for the outside unit trips because the compressor is having a hard time starting and will require a “hard start” kit to get it going again or it may be as simple as replacing a defective capacitor. Below is a list of possible causes and things to check. usually require a service call. Low voltage to the house as in a brown-out Under-sized breaker or wire Locked up motor or compressor Breaker tripping on A/C Condenser? Re: Breaker tripping on A/C Condenser?

You can always chance the breaker to rule that out, they are cheap ( $12.50) but I would venture to say it is the unit that needs looking at by an HVAC Tech.5 ton ac unit bryant NFPA 70 (NEC) Code Making Panel 5 and 17 Committee Memberjual ac portable murah di bekasi NEC Code Questions - Visit http://masterthenec.boards.net/mounting an ac unit sideways �Promise me you'll always remember: You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.� -RIP Dad, Love You!. Disclaimer - All my posts on this forum are of my own personal opinion and represent Electrical Code Academy, Inc. Although repeated breaker trips on a condenser can be a number of things, my first guesses would be either supply voltage is low if it's been unusually hot in the area (utility company just cant keep up) or the compressor is starting to go bad.

A bad breaker would most likely trip on startup before the unit even gets going, as that should normally be the highest current draw, and breakers don't fail very often (unless it's an FPE ... lol). But a number of things should be checked out (including things like the current it's drawing, possible loose connections, low supply voltage, internal electronics, etc.) before ya send the condenser flowers ... A specialist should check the startup and running load against the nameplate RLA with a clamp on amp probe to see if it's drawing too much current before ya start swapping things out. They should also check that the breaker is sized about right per the manufacturer/nameplate (around twice the RLA). Just swapping the breaker out in-kind without checking things may appear to solve the problem for a short time if the unit is drawing about the breaker rating at startup and/or while running (although it shouldn't be that close) and the new breaker has a slightly higher actual trip load.

JMO & WAG ... It is most likely due to heat. I am on Block Island, RI. and I know the weather over there in NJ. High heat = high refrigerant pressure = high amperage draw = high breaker heat. Dirty condenser coils (even if they look clean) is likely the cause. You need an HVAC evaluation to check all the possibilities, not the stabbing in the dark we do from here. Re: Breaker tripping on A/C Condenser?Electrical circuit breaker keep tripping. A few of my circuit breakers are turning off daily. I have to constantly flip them back to ON. What would cause this? I just moved into an older house and the breakers are old. The breakers in the electrical breaker box are NOT labelled. I am thinking there is a problem with my homes electrical wiring system. I am worried something will overheat and may cause a fire. I have been unplugging things and using less electricity to try and be safe. Is there something that I should test, check, or troubleshoot? How do I isolate which appliance or wiring issue is causing my electrical problem?

What To Do If A Breaker Keeps Tripping In Your HomeA circuit breaker trips off the electrical power flow to protect the circuit from overheating and causing any damage. Find out what appliance (such as the washer or dryer) that flips the breaker off. Take note as to what you are using when the breaker turns off and that should be your indicator. The appliance you are using when the breaker turns off is most likely the one causing your problem. You may be using too many electrical items at once. If you are in the kitchen and using the coffee maker, the microwave, and toaster all at once, it will probably flip the 110V breaker off. There are double pole and single pole breakers. Single are usually for 110V and double are for 220V.Breakers and labeling in breaker boxIt could also be a fault in an appliance or wiring in the wall. It may be a faulty cord, plug, outlet or even the breaker itself. Begin labeling the breaker box once you know what each breaker controls by turning the breakers off and then taking note what part of the house has lost power.

Put a sticker next to the breaker and write down what part of the house that breaker controls. Then fix or replace that cord, plug, outlet box, or breaker.A normal breaker should be labelled with the circuits it supplies something like ‘downstairs lights’ or ‘kitchen outlets’. If you can identify the electrical items being powered then you can turn them all off. Power them back on until the problem comes back. If this does not work, or if the breaker is labelled ‘RCD’, ‘RCBO’, ‘GFI’, ‘GFCI’ or has a ‘test’ button, you should call an electrician to at least diagnose the fault.Faulty Appliance outlets can trip the breakerYou may have an overload on a circuit that has devices that cycle on and off such as a refrigerator or A/C system. If that is not the case then the breaker may be defective. You should not replace a lower amp breaker with a higher amp breaker because the wires can melt.A multimeter can help you to determine if electrical components are working properly or not Good tool to have on hand for hundreds of uses!