Why would my heat pump keep tripping the circuit breaker?

[sccm_sysadmin]

Hi all,

I have a ~12ish year old Hayward HP21002 heat pump for my pool. 2nd owner, this will be my 3rd season with it.

At the end of last season it started giving me an "LP" error, which can apparently be a number of issues -- low pressure switch replacement, circuit board replacement, leak in the refrigerant, total system replacement, things like that...

I did troubleshooting today -- I disconnected the low pressure switch at the circuit board and bridged those two connections. It stopped flashing "LP" on the screen and after a minute or two (I'm assuming when it decided to turn on the compressor and start the heating cycle), it immediately tripped the circuit breaker. I'll also mention that due to my dogs chewing on the unions (over the winter when everything was totally disconnected) where the heater connects to the plumbing, it's been leaking pretty good there for the past few days, but I've never had issues with it tripping itself when it's raining. I've since fixed the leaking issues and I'm waiting for that area to dry out in the meantime.

Any ideas what might be causing my heat pump to trip the circuit breaker when it tries to turn on? I'm definitely willing to buy a new low pressure switch, and maybe a capacitor or two if that might be the issue, but I'm really hoping it isn't something more expensive.

Thanks!

 

[ajw22]

A HP is an air conditioner in reverse. You need to call in an AC guy to check the refrigerant level and pressures. Bypassing the LP switch isn't going to accomplish anything if the refrigerant is low. If his gauges say the pressures are in range then you go look for sensor problems in the unit.

 

[rajung]

At 12 years old , you may decide on a complete new unit anyway, even if is just low or empty due to a leak. That ( R-22) phased out refrigerant may be astronomically high in price per lb. compared to the new standard 410A refrigerant. Just something to keep in mind if you find out the problem and have to decide.

 

[sccm_sysadmin]

To update this: I had a local HVAC company out to look at it. 0 pressure in the unit, totally empty of refrigerant. After they put gauges on it, some water sprayed out from the coils so it is totally dead. Oh well.

 

[TonyJr]

At 12 years old , you may decide on a complete new unit anyway, even if is just low or empty due to a leak. That ( R-22) phased out refrigerant may be astronomically high in price per lb. compared to the new standard 410A refrigerant. Just something to keep in mind if you find out the problem and have to decide.

The new standard is now R32, with manufacturers currently looking into mainstreaming CO2 for the near future ?.

To update this: I had a local HVAC company out to look at it. 0 pressure in the unit, totally empty of refrigerant. After they put gauges on it, some water sprayed out from the coils so it is totally dead. Oh well.

Water coming out of the refrigerant pipework - that is not nice to hear. Was it an expensive unit?

 

[PoolGate]

Heat pumps typically last 10-15 years so you are right at the life-span of the unit.

 

[ajw22]

To update this: I had a local HVAC company out to look at it. 0 pressure in the unit, totally empty of refrigerant. After they put gauges on it, some water sprayed out from the coils so it is totally dead. Oh well.

Probably the coil developed a hole that let refrigerant out and moisture into the coil. That's often the way they die.

 

[sccm_sysadmin]

Sad, but oh well, nothing I can do about it.

Thankfully it's been pretty warm here recently and even without the heater our pool has gotten up to 80F. While my wife still considers this "cold" it is definitely better than it was a few weeks ago. We're considering buying a solar cover and seeing how well that might work just by itself.