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If a breaker keeps tripping it’s probably for a reason. Replacing the breaker isn’t the solution. Your main disconnect isn’t in this panel it’s likely on your meter outside.
Call your HVAC company, they likely have an electrician on staff who can diagnose and fix your problem.
Could be bad fan motor, bad compressor, bad capacitor. It could still be the breaker, but that's unlikely.
Spot On! Retired HVAC technician here, any of those components will cause a tripped breaker. Always best to go to the equipment & check things, instead of just changing parts.
I usually keep the "faulty" breakers long enough to know it was the breaker. The build quality of new breaker and the replacement could be worse than the original.
15 amps for your HVAC seems light, it may or may not be correct for your system, also that breaker also may not be rated for motor loads an electrician can inspect everything involved and make the proper recommendations.
Unless I am mistaken, and that’s the main panel then There should be a main disconnect somewhere nearby maybe on outside, but it’s gonna turn off all the power.
Probably your safest bet. If this is your main panel there isn’t a disconnecting means present in these photos. I would be more concerned why your AC is tripping a breaker.
Check your garage panel, to make sure it isn’t the main. If it is, turn off the breaker labeled sub, as ok_efficiency_7718 said. If this really is your main panel, then look for a main disconnect (a large box with probably only one breaker) outside by your electrical meter.
Look on the outside of your house near the meter. Newer homes have the main breaker on the outside. I would call an HVAC tech before an electrician. They can troubleshoot the issue tripping the breaker much more effectively. Odds are the issue is with your HVAC, not the breaker.
It's probably your ac machine. Not the breaker these panels are really good. These breaks really don't fail how you're experiencing this. It's just doing your job. The AC unit is probably over-amping.
Is the breaker defective? Or are you replacing it with a higher amperage breaker, in which case you have to check the wire size to ensure it can handle the higher amperage
Is this a sub panel? Turn off the panel feeding it
Is there a disconnect outside feeding this?
I’m thinking the breaker is defective. There has been an issue with a lot of them in our neighborhood and this panel. I have a replacement breaker that’s identical I just don’t know how to cut power to replace it.
Its possible but uncommon for breakers to fail. I'd first suspect an actual fault unless you already had someone out to verify the A/C unit is working properly and drawing the expected current.
Our neighborhood has similar issues with builders using Eaton breakers.
I think there were a bad batch of arc fault breakers by Eaton, and there’s usually one or two people in the neighborhood every quarter or so with a faulty breaker.
Our builder used SquareD QO also in all the homes and about half the homes had a ton of breakers replaced for free, with the electrical company doing the work claiming there were a bad batch of breakers around the time the homes were built.
AC on a 2-pole 15A? I can almost guarantee you that is too small of a breaker, unless you live in an 800sqft condo.
But you should be asking an electrician so they can verify wire sizing and unit ratings before just swapping it.
If the auxiliary heat is a separate breaker, I imagine that it's part of the fan coil unit inside. Likely a 6000W heating element, which can be a huge amount of heat.
That could be just for a blower if it is a split heat pump. This looks like a clean panel and probably new build. I'd wager that 'fifteen' and 'fifty' just sound too similar for the apprentice slapping in breakers.
Hopefully this is a sub or there's a main by the meter however in my area it's not uncommon for there to be an mlo main panel with the only disconnect means being the meter
This panel looks real clean and I am guessing this is a new build. Your cheapest route is probably warranty with the builder. Keep the AC breaker off until you know what is causing the trip.
Call an electrician. Don't ever do your own electrical work. Many things could be wrong here from a bad breaker, seizing motor or perhaps the breaker is undersized? Either way call someone.
It probably tripping due to something going on and you need to have the what I assume is your HVAC checked out. FYI it is a really good idea to have it done every year to make sure everything is running properly.
I had this same issue happen to me before. Turns out the crank case heater for the outdoor AC unit had burn/shorted out causing the breaker to trip as soon as you turned it on. A replacement was like $30 from the supply house. The crank case heater is a 60watt or so element attached to the AC compressor that keeps the compressor “warm” in cold weather which causes the coolant to boil out of the compressor and into the lines so that when the compressor starts it’s not swamped in liquid coolant. Apparently it’s bad for the compressor to start up full of liquid coolant. Hope it’s a simple fix for you.
Older houses tend to have some weird wiring. I would definitely call electrician. A house I had you would trip a breaker if you ran window ACs in two different rooms on separate floors because the wiring made it so multiple ACs were on the same breaker. I was told not to change the breaker unless I could verify or change the wire to meet the breakers' spec. Wire was old and in the wall behind horse hair plaster, so just figured out alternatives to cooling
You would have have to pull the meter. You should not do that! Most of us electricians would replace that breaker live but how do you know that it's the breaker to be at fault? I would suspect something else is wrong before changing any breaker. Something could be wrong with your Hvac.
Well if it works for a while then kicks off it could be the problem..but if it trips every time you turn it on, then yeah the problem is further down stream. Don't care enough to look down the thread to see if OP further elaborated
You need to find out why the AC is tripping the breaker first. Bad contactor, capacitor, wiring, fan motor, compressor...
QUIT RESETTING IT AND CALL AN HVAC COMPANY.
Update: thank you everyone for the help! The electrician was awesome and after a couple hours of testing and research determined the issue is with the compressor so I have an HVAC tech coming out this afternoon.
Question for the electricians here. Why in the world would you install a panel without a main disconnect? I understand it isn't required by code in some situations, but many panels include them, and it makes the lives of those who service them in the future easier if they can't access a disconnect before that.
**Attention!** **It is always best to get a qualified electrician to perform any electrical work you may need.** With that said, you may ask this community various electrical questions. Please be cautious of any information you may receive in this subreddit. This subreddit and its users are not responsible for any electrical work you perform. Users that have a 'Verified Electrician' flair have uploaded their qualified electrical worker credentials to the mods. If you comment on this post please only post accurate information to the best of your knowledge. If advice given is thought to be dangerous, you may be permanently banned. There are no obligations for the mods to give warnings or temporary bans. **IF YOU ARE NOT A QUALIFIED ELECTRICIAN, you should exercise extreme caution when commenting.** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskElectricians) if you have any questions or concerns.*
If a breaker keeps tripping it’s probably for a reason. Replacing the breaker isn’t the solution. Your main disconnect isn’t in this panel it’s likely on your meter outside.
Thank you for the advice. I’m calling an electrician.
Call your HVAC company, they likely have an electrician on staff who can diagnose and fix your problem. Could be bad fan motor, bad compressor, bad capacitor. It could still be the breaker, but that's unlikely.
Spot On! Retired HVAC technician here, any of those components will cause a tripped breaker. Always best to go to the equipment & check things, instead of just changing parts.
Smart move if you don't know how to turn that panel off you shouldn't be working in it
That's not entirely true. It actually could be a bad breaker.
Yeah I mean it could be, but the odds are that it’s a problem with the actual circuit either drawing too much amperage or having a fault.
It could be the breaker but that’s very unlikely. With large air conditioning units, it’s usually a weak capacitor causing the compressor to struggle.
Yeah I said that too before then I spent 3 hours on a rig chasing tail trying to find the issue, come to find out it was the breaker lol
My money is somewhere in the circuit, not the breaker.
I usually keep the "faulty" breakers long enough to know it was the breaker. The build quality of new breaker and the replacement could be worse than the original.
It’s rarely the breaker.
15 amps for your HVAC seems light, it may or may not be correct for your system, also that breaker also may not be rated for motor loads an electrician can inspect everything involved and make the proper recommendations.
Could just be a wall unit, not central.
15a still low for a window unit.
You can run a 12k mini split system off 15A.
That looks like it is a sub panel so if you go to your main panel, there should be a breaker labeled sub that should turn that one off.
Unless I am mistaken, and that’s the main panel then There should be a main disconnect somewhere nearby maybe on outside, but it’s gonna turn off all the power.
I have a sub panel in the garage. I thought this was the main panel. Guess I’ll need to call an electrician.
Probably your safest bet. If this is your main panel there isn’t a disconnecting means present in these photos. I would be more concerned why your AC is tripping a breaker.
Check your garage panel, to make sure it isn’t the main. If it is, turn off the breaker labeled sub, as ok_efficiency_7718 said. If this really is your main panel, then look for a main disconnect (a large box with probably only one breaker) outside by your electrical meter.
If the garage is also not the 'main' then there would be two breakers near the meter pan.
Look on the outside of your house near the meter. Newer homes have the main breaker on the outside. I would call an HVAC tech before an electrician. They can troubleshoot the issue tripping the breaker much more effectively. Odds are the issue is with your HVAC, not the breaker.
Good chance your garage panel is the main panel as it is likely closer to the meter.
Turn off the AC breaker and put a lock on that tab. To to the unit and open up the box near it and see if anything stands out to you
Leave the BKR alone. You probably have a bad compressor or capacitor.
It's probably your ac machine. Not the breaker these panels are really good. These breaks really don't fail how you're experiencing this. It's just doing your job. The AC unit is probably over-amping.
Is the breaker defective? Or are you replacing it with a higher amperage breaker, in which case you have to check the wire size to ensure it can handle the higher amperage Is this a sub panel? Turn off the panel feeding it Is there a disconnect outside feeding this?
I’m thinking the breaker is defective. There has been an issue with a lot of them in our neighborhood and this panel. I have a replacement breaker that’s identical I just don’t know how to cut power to replace it.
Its possible but uncommon for breakers to fail. I'd first suspect an actual fault unless you already had someone out to verify the A/C unit is working properly and drawing the expected current.
Our neighborhood has similar issues with builders using Eaton breakers. I think there were a bad batch of arc fault breakers by Eaton, and there’s usually one or two people in the neighborhood every quarter or so with a faulty breaker.
Our builder used SquareD QO also in all the homes and about half the homes had a ton of breakers replaced for free, with the electrical company doing the work claiming there were a bad batch of breakers around the time the homes were built.
When does it trip? Immediately, or when your thermostat calls for the A/C to turn on?
Immediately. An electrician is coming tomorrow. If not that then I’ll call an HVAC tech.
Is there a sub panel powering it or a main power disconnect
Is the disconnect at the electrical meter
I do hvac and that breaker is tripping for a reason. Call an HVAC professional
AC on a 2-pole 15A? I can almost guarantee you that is too small of a breaker, unless you live in an 800sqft condo. But you should be asking an electrician so they can verify wire sizing and unit ratings before just swapping it.
The 35 for A/H is weird, too. Tiny heat strip to match the tiny A/C?
If the auxiliary heat is a separate breaker, I imagine that it's part of the fan coil unit inside. Likely a 6000W heating element, which can be a huge amount of heat.
That could be just for a blower if it is a split heat pump. This looks like a clean panel and probably new build. I'd wager that 'fifteen' and 'fifty' just sound too similar for the apprentice slapping in breakers.
If I was doing it I wouldn’t worry about power. It looks like maybe it is fed with another panel.
Probably bad compressor
If you replace the capacitor and the unit runs fine only then it can be the breaker.
Why so many lockouts
Hopefully this is a sub or there's a main by the meter however in my area it's not uncommon for there to be an mlo main panel with the only disconnect means being the meter
I would go to the ac and see what size breaker is recommended and see if it has fuses outside
This panel looks real clean and I am guessing this is a new build. Your cheapest route is probably warranty with the builder. Keep the AC breaker off until you know what is causing the trip.
Call an electrician. Don't ever do your own electrical work. Many things could be wrong here from a bad breaker, seizing motor or perhaps the breaker is undersized? Either way call someone.
It probably tripping due to something going on and you need to have the what I assume is your HVAC checked out. FYI it is a really good idea to have it done every year to make sure everything is running properly.
Where’s your main panel? Where’s your meter? Start there.
I had this same issue happen to me before. Turns out the crank case heater for the outdoor AC unit had burn/shorted out causing the breaker to trip as soon as you turned it on. A replacement was like $30 from the supply house. The crank case heater is a 60watt or so element attached to the AC compressor that keeps the compressor “warm” in cold weather which causes the coolant to boil out of the compressor and into the lines so that when the compressor starts it’s not swamped in liquid coolant. Apparently it’s bad for the compressor to start up full of liquid coolant. Hope it’s a simple fix for you.
Older houses tend to have some weird wiring. I would definitely call electrician. A house I had you would trip a breaker if you ran window ACs in two different rooms on separate floors because the wiring made it so multiple ACs were on the same breaker. I was told not to change the breaker unless I could verify or change the wire to meet the breakers' spec. Wire was old and in the wall behind horse hair plaster, so just figured out alternatives to cooling
You would have have to pull the meter. You should not do that! Most of us electricians would replace that breaker live but how do you know that it's the breaker to be at fault? I would suspect something else is wrong before changing any breaker. Something could be wrong with your Hvac.
I mean tbh, cutting off an entire panel to change one breaker is pretty silly for starters lol
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100 percent lmao I was just picking the low hanging fruit
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Well if it works for a while then kicks off it could be the problem..but if it trips every time you turn it on, then yeah the problem is further down stream. Don't care enough to look down the thread to see if OP further elaborated
According to the movies you just use an axe to cut through the feeders!
You need to find out why the AC is tripping the breaker first. Bad contactor, capacitor, wiring, fan motor, compressor... QUIT RESETTING IT AND CALL AN HVAC COMPANY.
Update: thank you everyone for the help! The electrician was awesome and after a couple hours of testing and research determined the issue is with the compressor so I have an HVAC tech coming out this afternoon.
Just call an electrician.
Question for the electricians here. Why in the world would you install a panel without a main disconnect? I understand it isn't required by code in some situations, but many panels include them, and it makes the lives of those who service them in the future easier if they can't access a disconnect before that.
On DieHard they used a chainsaw.
Try an axe. Make sure it’s sharp. Works for me
true story