AC handler replacement in the attic

[nmbexcuse]

Well I am in between a rock and a very hard place.

My air handler is broken, it's over 7 years old and the AC guy told me it's not worth it to fix it I should get a new one when my ceiling sheet rocks are down and doing remodeling. The air handler is inside the attic, supported by the rafters.

My joists are 16" apart. There is no way I can see to take down that handler and move in a new one. Not unless there is a handler 16" or less...I need a 3.5 ton.

Do I have to cut one joist to facilitate this or is there another solution I am overlooking?

Thanks,

MC

[ransley]

7 years? mine is 22 and still worth fixing unless the coil has a leak, its a motor, and a coil

[Moe Jones]

Can you not put in a pull down stairway close by?

[HeyBub]

Yeah, you may be trying to fix the wrong problem. There is nothing in an air handler that shouldn't last 100 years - except the motor and that's about as big as two shoe boxes.

What is it about the air handler that's "broken"?

[Don Young]

With an air handler in the attic (or any place else) you need adequate access for installation and service. Codes generally require it as well.

If your air handler is only 7 years old, it seems unlikely that it can not be economically repaired. Get a second (and maybe a third) opinion on that.

Don Young

[Kickin' Ass and Takin' Names]

Easy fix.

Get another a/c contractor.

Nothing in an air handler that can't be replaced -- and the original should last 25 years.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Air handlers are essentially boxes with a coil, blower wheel and a motor, maybe a pillow block bearing. Not hard to fix.

How did you get your ass up into the attic? The air handler will probably fit through the same access hole.

[Stormin Mormon]

My sense, from the writing, is there is no ass hole to climb through. Some access-hole did sheetrock across the entire ceiling, and sealed it all in.

By now, the access-hole sheet rock guy is probably long since gone. Opens up the idea, that maybe the OP needs an ass hole so he can get his ass into the attic. Maybe he can find a sheetrock guy who's not such an access hole?

[Tony Hwang]

Hmmm, Wonder how it was installed then and it can't be deinstalled?

[Red Green]

[e-mail] wrote in news:d5df35d6-22da-4ca0-bf0e- [e-mail]:

7 yrs old, it should be fixable and worth fixing.

16" in the ceiling and not 24?

The ones I've seen (not that many) are all in ceilings where the trusses are 24" apart. All parts are made to not need any more than 22 1/2 inches so they fit through the acces hole/scuttle. It does not go up or down in one piece. Assembled/disassembled in the attic.

[MiamiCuse]

I do not know what the problem is, the AC tech told me "it's shot" and I should replace it if I plan on living in the house for more than a few years. I did not question him further on the why...I should have.

I get up to the attic via a 16"x16" hatch opening. The air handler looks like the size of a small refrigerator. Definitely will not fit through the

16"x16" I used to get up there.

MC

[MiamiCuse]

Not true. There are six attic hatches in the house, all 16x16 square holes, original from 1970.

But I don't need to get into it via the 16x16 holes, my sheet rocks are down from the ceiling. I can climb in through the space between the joists. But they are still 16" apart. The air handler is the size of a small fridge, no way it will fit through the opening, not unless the unit is disassembled, even then, I don't think.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

If the sheetrock is down, now is the time to frame out an access hold by cutting one joist and boxing it in

[Stormin Mormon]

That does sound as though the air handler was installed before the ceiling was finished. Or before the roof. Good luck, hope you can get it repaired. I do suggest calling a second, and maybe third AC service company.

[ransley]

And that 16" round duct should be replaced with a rectangle 3-4" duct so you get a foot more in ceiling height, your tech is a hack trying to make easy money , get a few real pros out to go over everything

[MiamiCuse]

And that 16" round duct should be replaced with a rectangle 3-4" duct so you get a foot more in ceiling height, your tech is a hack trying to make easy money , get a few real pros out to go over everything

Oh no, the two threads are totally independent. I have two AC zones and they operate different parts of the house, one thread is not related to the other thread at all.

I call the tech back today and asked him why he suggested that I should replace the air handler why it cannot be repaired. He told me that the air handler up in the attic and the condenser in the backyard do not match. The air handler is for 3 tons (I am not sure) and the condenser is for 3.5 tons (it could be the other way around), and since the air handler is broken, he suggested that I change it to match. Does it make sense? I will definitely get a few more techs out here to see.

Thanks,

[CJT]

Not to me. But it likely WILL bring him more $$$, so it probably makes sense to HIM.

I will definitely

[Wayne Boatwright]

On Sat 24 May 2008 10:20:18a, CJT told us...

Right. A 3 to 3-1/2 ton mismatch is usually acceptable in either direction. A mismatch of 3 to 5 ton would not be a good choice.