[Nick0703]

I had a new AC unit installed last Saturday and I have some concerns about the clearances around the unit. I decided to read the installation manual today and saw that this unit requires the following clearances:

• Service clearance of 30 in. must be maintained on one of the sides
  adjacent to the control box.
• Clearance to one of the other three sides must be 36 in.
• Clearance to one of the remaining two sides may be 12 in. and the
  final side may be 6 in.
• A clearance of 24 in. must be maintained between two units.
• 48 in. clearance required on top of unit.

The unit is a 3 ton Lennox EL16XC1. Indoor coil is a CX35-36B.

While 2 sides seem to have the proper clearance, the other two don't.

6 inches from the wall.

3 inches from the wall at the back.

Don't mind the quality of the ground lol. Brand new house... Builder will finish up the grading this summer.

Will these clearance issues have a impact on the performance of the unit? If yes, I will call the installer back to fix it.
Also this unit seems to be making a strange noise, like a gas powered lawn mover which can be heard inside the house. youtu.be/KDI87Nqydy0
It is normal for scroll compressors to make that kind of noise? My neighbor has a cheaper unit and his is way quieter.

 

[kdean1]

That is too close to the wall. The manufacturer's installation instructions should be followed. Why would they make such instructions if directions were discretionary?
That's a tight space. The installer may object that they cannot extend the unit across the property line. In that case they will have to find another location for the unit in order to comply with the clearance instructions.

The noise may be caused by restricted air flow. Sometimes noise is transmitted to the structure by the refrigerant tubing. Wait until the proper clearances are provided to make an issue of the noise.

 

[Nick0703]

I will call the installer tomorrow and have them fix it. I was actually surprised when their technician was mounting the unit on the bracket. I even asked him about it and he said "Yea, it's fine", I didn't have the installation manual at that time or else I would have insist him on installing it properly.

 

[Bazooka Joe]

If they turned it 90 degree Counter Clockwise and adding more railing to existing railing they could slide the unit 12+" ( away from the angel wall ) the existing 6" from the angle wall plus sliding the unit 12" giving 18" from that wall, seeing that the unit is longer than wider turning it 90 degree CCW would give you another 3+ inches ( from back wall ) plus they can move it further out from the back wall 6 plus inches for a total of 12" from back wall.

The refrigerant piping hookup would still be tucked in back by the wall and out of the way and you would have more access room to remove the electrical panel....at least that's what I would tell them.

Lastly where the electrical access panel ( on the unit ) the condenser tubing does not go fully around from corner to corner like the other sides, that corner has approx. 75 % tubing ( as that panel has all the electrical controls ) compared with 100% tubing surface area of the other sides.

Where is the outdoor disconnect/shut off switch for the OD unit?

Make sure you register your system needing the serial number of the indoor and outdoor unit or your compressor and parts warranty will be cut in half.

 

[Nick0703]

Probably if they turned it 90 degree Counter Clockwise adding more railing to existing railing they could move it 12" plus the existing 6" from angle wall giving 18" from that wall, seeing that the unit is longer than wider turning it 90 degree CCW would give you another 3+ inches plus they can move it further out from the back wall 6" plus inches for a total of 12" from back wall.

The refrigerant piping hookup would still be tucked in back by the wall and you would have more access room to remove the electrical panel..at least that's what I would tell them.

Make sure you register your system needing the serial number of the indoor and outdoor unit or your compressor and parts warranty will be cut in half.

I will mention this to them. And yes, that's the first thing I did the following day. Technician said no need to register the unit myself as they will do it for me but I didn't want to take any chances lol.

 

[kdean1]

Expect them to resist. Show them the installation instructions. Be firm.

 

[Bazooka Joe]

I will mention this to them. And yes, that's the first thing I did the following day. Technician said no need to register the unit myself as they will do it for me but I didn't want to take any chances lol.

To me the yellow cap ( guessing a rubberized plastic cap? ) that's hooked on top of the service valves copper small refrigerant tubing to me does not belong there, it looks like they lost the brass screw on cap ( as can be seen on the larger line ) if you can lift it off and there is not the brass cap under that you can easily have a potential refrigerant leak in the future as the brass screw on cap helps seal that service access valve. To compare look at the other unit I'm guessing there are two brass caps on that unit.

 

[Nick0703]

To me the yellow cap that's hooked on top of the service valves small tubing to me does not belong there, it looks like they lost the brass screw on cap ( as can be seen on the larger line ) if you can lift it off and there is not the brass cap under that you can easily have a potential refrigerant leak in the future. To compare look at the other unit I'm guessing there are two brass caps on that unit.

Oh that yellow cap, yes there is a brass cap under it. One of the technician helpers put that yellow cap on top of it, I have no idea why.

Expect them to resist. Show them the installation instructions. Be firm.

We haven't fully paid them yet. We paid the first half when the unit was installed and other half will be paid next week. If they resist, I will also resist with the second payment. I paid a lot for this unit and I'm not going to let them get away with this installation.

Lastly where the electrical access panel ( on the unit ) the condenser tubing does not go fully around from corner to corner like the other sides, that side has approx. 75 % tubing ( as that panel has all the electrical controls ) compared with 100% tubing surface area of the other sides.

Where is the outdoor disconnect/shut off switch for the OD unit?

The disconnect switch is out of frame. I'll get a proper picture of it tomorrow, it's really dark outside right now.

Regarding the condenser tubing, you mean it should be like this?

 

[Bazooka Joe]

Oh that yellow cap, yes there is a brass cap under it. One of the technician helpers put that yellow cap on top of it, I have no idea why.


We haven't fully paid them yet. We paid the first half when the unit was installed and other half will be paid next week. If they resist, I will also resist with the second payment. I paid a lot for this unit and I'm not going to let them get away with this installation.



The disconnect switch is out of frame. I'll get a proper picture of it tomorrow, it's really dark outside right now.
View attachment 792451

Regarding the condenser tubing, you mean it should be like this?
View attachment 792461

They could either move the metal frame ( where condenser sits or add more metal whichever is easier IMO ) the electrical access panel I'm talking about is on the condensing unit, I just referenced that the condensor coil goes 75% then stops as the electrical access is taking up that room. Has nothing to do with the line set against the wall. My point was when you turn it 90 degree CCW your going to have that corner ( with the electrical box ) and 75% of the condenser tubing in that corner instead of 100 % condensor coil in that corner, so more of the coil is exposed to free air. A little Better air flow situation through the coil....it's not important if you do not understand.

Does your code say that the outdoor disconnect switch is suppose to be certain distance from the OD unit? Possible the local inspector may know. Seems far away.

 

[kdean1]

We haven't fully paid them yet. We paid the first half when the unit was installed and other half will be paid next week. If they resist, I will also resist with the second payment. I paid a lot for this unit and I'm not going to let them get away with this installation.

Regarding the condenser tubing, you mean it should be like this?
View attachment 792461

That lineset arrangement may help.
As for the location, why did they put it in the corner? It looks like there is plenty of room to move it towards the location of the photographer. That would provide enough clearance from the short wall.

 

[Nick0703]

They could either move the metal frame ( where condenser sits or add more metal whichever is easier IMO ) the electrical access panel I'm talking about is on the condensing unit, I just referenced that the condensor coil goes 75% then stops as the electrical access is taking up that room. Has nothing to do with the line set against the wall. My point was when you turn it 90 degree CCW your going to have that corner ( with the electrical box ) and 75% of the tubing in that corner instead of 100 % coil in that corner, so more of the coil is exposed to free air. Better air flow situation....

Oh I see what you mean now!

Does your code say that the outdoor disconnect switch is suppose to be certain distance from the OD unit? Possible the local inspector may know. Seems far away.

I couldn't find anything regarding that, I will have to call a local inspector to find out.

 

[Nick0703]

That lineset arrangement may help.
As for the location, why did they put it in the corner? It looks like there is plenty of room to move it towards the location of the photographer. That would provide enough clearance from the short wall.

There is the gas water heater exhaust pipe where I was standing, it's like 3 inches from the disconnect switch. The tech said that the unit can't be too close to the vent as it might cause some problems down the road. With the unit on this side of the house, the lineset length is about 15 feet to the furnace, if the unit was on the other side of the house, it would be around 30-35 feet.

If I need to move the unit to the other side of the house, will the longer lineset decrease the efficiency of the unit?

 

[Bazooka Joe]

Oh I see what you mean now!


I couldn't find anything regarding that, I will have to call a local inspector to find out.

The answer may be ( outdoor disconnect switch ) as long as it's in sight of the condensing unit...it's OK

In regards to moving unit to the other side 30-35 feet that is well within manufacture spec. and would not be a issue.

 

[Nick0703]

So I contacted the Head Office this morning and they said it's fixable. They will get in touch with the technician first and will contact me back later today.

 

[Bazooka Joe]

Yay, post some after photos, we have before photos

 

[Nick0703]

The same tech who installed my unit came back last week. He was kinda pissed that I complained about the clearance issues, he said that he has been doing this for years and it's fine etc... I suggested him the fixes that you guys proposed to me but he said he can't do it. To me, it sounded like he didn't want to rework the lineset. He however did pull the unit a couple inches away from the back wall. It's now 6 inches away from the wall. The corner area also got more area exposed.

The sound issues that I was having before kinda went away, it's still there but not that much annoying. I will wait for my builder to finish the landscaping first then I'll get another HVAC company to move the unit a bit more to the right (rotate it counterclockwise) and drop it onto a pad (Hopefully this will decrease the noise level further more).

Overall I'm really pleased with the performance of this unit, we got like a mini heatwave over the weekend here in Toronto and the unit was able to drop my house temperature by 2°C within 3 hours. Also the humidity level went down to 47% RH from 68% RH, my thermostat (icomfort S30) went into dehumidifying mode once it reached the setpoint temperature but then the house got really cold, had to increase the temperature lol.

 

[NETWizz]

That's no good for clearance. Make them fix into right. Complain again... or you are the one stuck with it. Having it close to the building is like having a dirty coil due to poor airflow. You might get better performance and certainly will save on your energy bills.

Make them rework the line set.