Home electrical issues

[MadMatt]

I have an air conditioner that keeps tripping the breaker even though I will run a long extension cord to stop it from shuting off my tv,internet and stereo. One thing I've noticed the extension cord gets a bit warm so I stopped using it and I'm probably going to throw it out.

I was thinking about using an adapter (if they make one) to use the 220v outlet as a 110v. Any ideas, advice? I don't know anything about electricity

[Fernanernie]

Stop tripping the breaker, and don't pull too many amps through a shitty old extension cord. Or, enjoy your house fire

[svonasek]

Is the air conditioner something like a 110 volt window mount or something? Does it have full load amp (FLA) rating?

[Gipper]

Did it just recently start tripping the breaker or has it done it since it was new? If it just started, it's possible that the A/C unit is slowly dying which is causing it to draw more amps. Or, it could simply be a weak breaker. Is the unit cooling OK? Have you cleaned the filter? Dirty filters can cause the fan motor to draw more amps. It's also possible that it's lost a bit of it's freon charge which will cause the evaporator to freeze solid and block airflow...

A 220 adapter isn't going to do much good since it basically drops one phase of 110 power and you'll be running on the the other 110 phase...... which is basically what it's running on now, except the 220 outlet is probably on at least a 20 amp breaker or larger. (I'm assuming your A/C is currently on a 15 amp breaker?)

[MadMatt]

Stop tripping the breaker, and don't pull too many amps through a shitty old extension cord. Or, enjoy your house fire

It's in the trash.

Is the air conditioner something like a 110 volt window mount or something? Does it have full load amp (FLA) rating?

Well, I didn't buy this unit, its a window unit. The rating on the plug is 15amps, 125volts and 1875watts.

[MadMatt]

Did it just recently start tripping the breaker or has it done it since it was new? If it just started, it's possible that the A/C unit is slowly dying which is causing it to draw more amps. Or, it could simply be a weak breaker. Is the unit cooling OK? Have you cleaned the filter? Dirty filters can cause the fan motor to draw more amps. It's also possible that it's lost a bit of it's freon charge which will cause the evaporator to freeze solid and block airflow...

A 220 adapter isn't going to do much good since it basically drops one phase of 110 power and you'll be running on the the other 110 phase...... which is basically what it's running on now, except the 220 outlet is probably on at least a 20 amp breaker or larger. (I'm assuming your A/C is currently on a 15 amp breaker?)

It would trip the breaker once in a while when new. My landlord is a cheapass and replaced the 220 wall unit with this window unit. I just looked at the box and yes, it is a 15 amp breaker that keeps going off. The 220 outlet is rated at 20 amps. I'll clean the filter!

[Gipper]

Can you look through the vent openings to see if there is any ice buildup?

Is the unit cooling/blowing like it should?

[MadMatt]

I noticed no ice and it is was also blowing cold when I was using the AC and not just the fan.

[Gipper]

That outlet that you're calling 220.... does that have a single breaker, or is it a double breaker (where the two switches are bridged together)

It's possible that it's not actually 220. It could be a "20 amp dedicated circuit" which is still 110 volts but uses a different style plug. If that's the case, then yes, you could use an adapter to plug in your unit to take advantage of the 20 amp circuit.

[svonasek]

To get a true 15 amps the extensions cord would have to be atleast 14 gauge wire. I wouldn't trust any of the cheaper extension cords.

The heating up is most likely due to having to small of wire in the extension cord. That would also cause the breaker tripping

[MadMatt]

It is a double breaker.

[MadMatt]

To get a true 15 amps the extensions cord would have to be atleast 14 gauge wire. I wouldn't trust any of the cheaper extension cords.

The heating up is most likely due to having to small of wire in the extension cord. That would also cause the breaker tripping

It would trip last summer while plugged into the Monster surge protector all my audio/tv is in. I think I'm just going to go with an adapter for the 220.

[Gipper]

It is a double breaker.

Yep, it's 220. (obviously)

[Gipper]

How many other electric devices are running on that same circuit? It sounds like the A/C is working fine, it's just simply too much for that circuit to handle when everything else is also turned on.

An adapter for the 220 outlet should fix the problem. (if you can find the correct one)

[MadMatt]

Yep, it's 220. (obviously)

Thanks.