Rebel Pioneer Mini Split Install

[sevenzeronova]

Read

http://www.trutechtools.com/Vacuum-Training_c_1100.html

 

[jonathan75]

Read

http://www.trutechtools.com/Vacuum-Training_c_1100.html

"2nd Standing Test

Open the core tools and allow the system to continue the evacuation process until the vacuum level is 500 microns or less. Then repeat the "standing test" to determine of there is a decrease in leak rate after the stabilization of the vacuum. If there is no leak, the 2nd leak rate in the system the leak rate should be considerably less than the first indicating progress in the job of dehydration."

I will have to calculate my own leak rate since my gauge does not have that feature. But after mine stabilized my leak rate was very little. It does not say in the link you provided that it has to stay under 500 during the standing test. It just says to check for decrease in leak rate after it stabilized.

 

[sevenzeronova]

Finish or last should stay below.
Maybe I misinterpreted you description.

 

[jonathan75]

Finish or last should stay below.
Maybe I misinterpreted you description.

I only ran it for around 10 mins max. Probably was not enough to get the moisture out of the lines and gauge. After sitting all night I will run it again for longer and see what happens. Right now it is at 1060 and it has been a few hours. So probably the gauge is reading moisture and not a leak.

 

[sevenzeronova]

New charging hoses out gas when new. Probably your rise.
Really should use vacuum rated hoses. They are usually black and micron rated.

 

[jonathan75]

New charging hoses out gas when new. Probably your rise.
Really should use vacuum rated hoses. They are usually black and micron rated.

I think I am going to have to make due with what I have and draw a line. There seems to be a never ending list of tool upgrades I can do. I can probably spend more for tools then I have for the Mini Split.

 

[smokey0810]

I left a foot of room between the wall and the back of the condensor. All other sides are open and accessible. U sure purchased a ton of equipment for this job....

 

[jonathan75]

I got the outdoor unit on the ground today. It is not very level beside my garage so I had to flatten the ground out and put down some rock for drainage. It turned out deeper then I wanted but it does not get very much rain there most of the time. I plan to use some metal edging on the back side to divert the water around the pad. Also I will put some weed fabric down behind and around the unit with some mulch on top so no trimmers will need to get close.

 

[smokey0810]

Not trying to be capt buzzkill here, but u sure u have enough room between the wall and the back of your condenser? Looks REAL good otherwise. Nice install.

 

[jonathan75]

Not trying to be capt buzzkill here, but u sure u have enough room between the wall and the back of your condenser? Looks REAL good otherwise. Nice install.

The base is more then 12 inches. The unit is a little further away then that because of where it sits on the base.

 

[jonathan75]

Today I did the electrical work. Nothing exciting or challenging to report. Here are some pictures to help others. Tomorrow will be cutting and flaring.

I spaced the hole for the electrical wire just right so the screws to hold the box would hit the stud.

 

[jonathan75]

More electrical work pictures....

 

[jonathan75]

 

[jonathan75]

More electrical pr0n. "I say whip it, Whip it good!"

 

[jonathan75]

The good news is I got it running today, the bad news is that the squirrel cage fan is not balanced because of some missing blades. When I turned it on some blades fell out and it was rattling. The imbalance is causing the whole unit to vibrate and shake really bad. I really hope Parker Davis can send me a new squirrel cage that I can replace easily without messing with the refrigerant. The coils seem in the way so I really hope it can be done. Such a shame too because I really took my time to make sure everything was right. I don't want to replace the whole indoor unit because it is leak free and working!

 

[jonathan75]

Here are some pictures of what I did today. It took some practice but I finally got the flares looking good. Actually my first flare already looked better then the factor flare. The factory flare had a ridge on it and it was not as deep as it should be.

 

[jonathan75]

After I pulled down the vacuum for over a hour I tested to make sure it would not raise up too high after I shut the pump off. I went by the LG instructions of not over 1000 in 10 mins. But I did get it down to 97 Microns!

 

[jonathan75]

I pressure tested it by allowing the refrigerant to flow in some after I did the vacuum. I closed the valve back down and tested all the connections.

Such a shame it blows cold and works so well but shakes because of the squirrel cage. I really hope Parker Davis comes through for me on Monday and can ship me the new part soon. Has anyone replaced a squirrel cage fan in a mini split before? Can you usually get it out without messing with the coils or refrigerant?

 

[sevenzeronova]

If it is similar to a mitsubishi, sanyo, fujitsu. You should have no problem changing the the blower wheel. Left side has a sealed bearing . Right side is attached with set screw to motor. A lot a screws in cover and sub cover. But I have replaced many without pumping system down.

 

[jonathan75]

If it is similar to a mitsubishi, sanyo, fujitsu. You should have no problem changing the the blower wheel. Left side has a sealed bearing . Right side is attached with set screw to motor. A lot a screws in cover and sub cover. But I have replaced many without pumping system down.

Thank you for your feedback. It makes me feel a little better that I should be able to do it without much trouble. Hopefully they have the part in stock.

 

[jonathan75]

Today I had a chance to make things look a little neater. I still have to cover everything on the wall but I bundled the lot up together for now.

I cut metal edging to fit around the pad so the ground won't fall into it. The pad is embedded some to make it level. After that I put down landscape fabric and mulched. My son helped a lot with this one. He got excited when we found a rock in the mulch.

 

[jonathan75]

I put the drain tube to the end of the mulched area. Hopefully the mulch won't clog it up, I will keep my eye on it.

 

[JakeKohl]

Jonathan,

That drain tube will eventually clog since it is below the mulch. It should be elevated so it can drip several inches above the ground.

 

[jonathan75]

Jonathan,

That drain tube will eventually clog since it is below the mulch. It should be elevated so it can drip several inches above the ground.

Thank you for the tip Jake. I will cut it shorter and fasten it to the wall. I probably should of used PVC pipe because this hose likes to curl up and won't stay straight. That is why I had a rock on the end to keep it from curling.

 

[jonathan75]

Good news, Parker Davis is shipping me a new squirrel cage fan today. They said I can replace it without messing with the coils or charge. I should get it by the end of the week.

 

[TheWhiteMamba]

Great write up and pics!!

One question I have though and it has been bothering me for a few days before I start my install, what wiring are you using for your installation and where did you get it from?

I really don't want to run 12-3 Indoor NM inside a conduit to the outdoors (even tho some people say its ok and some don't) but it is about impossible to find 12-3 outdoor anywhere unless you pony up $200+ for a 250' bundle!

Do you or anyone else have any tips you could share?

 

[jonathan75]

Great write up and pics!!

One question I have though and it has been bothering me for a few days before I start my install, what wiring are you using for your installation and where did you get it from?

I really don't want to run 12-3 Indoor NM inside a conduit to the outdoors (even tho some people say its ok and some don't) but it is about impossible to find 12-3 outdoor anywhere unless you pony up $200+ for a 250' bundle!

Do you or anyone else have any tips you could share?

I think outdoor rated is more important for direct burial. If the wire is inside a conduit along a wall I don't feel it is necessary. For my case it is just going through a wall right inside a box, it is not exposed to the elements. I just use what I had laying around which was regular 10-3. At least I have room to grow in the future if necessary but I am still using a 20 amp breaker.

From the box to the unit you can use a ready made whip for around $10 that is water tight.

 

[TheWhiteMamba]

That is kind of what I was thinking and am going to be going that route seeing as I can't find outdoor wire anywhere that is not in bulk. My unit will be going out off a wall on the garage and not be more than 8 feet from my breaker box anyways (so not buried), and is under a cove, and in central California where we get about 3 inches of rain a year, so I am thinking it should be good. Thanks for the insight.

I hope you get squared away on the squirrel cage! I have the same vibration dampeners as you and hope they work!

 

[jonathan75]

I hope you get squared away on the squirrel cage! I have the same vibration dampeners as you and hope they work!

I am going to do a final level tweak with the bolts on the dampeners. Also I get a little ticking noise from the unit when running. If I press one side down it stops, so I will tweak on the bolts and play with it until the noise goes away.

 

[smokey0810]

Thank you for making everyone pay more for these because you didn't read the directions and evacuate the system.

Appreciate the insult...Actually, the directions do not say anything about having to evac the system, and they make it seem like the heat exchanger is in the main wall unit. Nice to see your first official post was to cut someone down.

 

[smokey0810]

Jonathan, I would certainly recommend cleaning the filters in the wall unit every 2 weeks per the instructions. They get pretty dirty, and can be just rinsed with water. I enjoy my unit greatly.

 

[smokey0810]

BTW, really like your install. Looks sweet!

 

[jonathan75]

Appreciate the insult...Actually, the directions do not say anything about having to evac the system, and they make it seem like the heat exchanger is in the main wall unit. Nice to see your first official post was to cut someone down.

He was a little hard on you. We all make mistakes and that is how we learn. Actually their cost on these parts are probably very low. If you have the 9000 BTU version I think it starts on page 13. The bottom part on page 14 is funny because they tell you how to do it without a vacuum pump but tell you not to do it! It is like telling you *********** someone but please don't kill anybody.

Jonathan, I would certainly recommend cleaning the filters in the wall unit every 2 weeks per the instructions. They get pretty dirty, and can be just rinsed with water. I enjoy my unit greatly.

I heard about this, they will get clogged fast. I wonder if we can find better filters for the unit? In my garage it does not matter but for the house I would want something better.

BTW, really like your install. Looks sweet!

Thank you, I am looking forward to completing the install. My replacement fan was delayed one day so I won't get it until Friday now. After that and putting the gutter and wrap over the line set and it will be done!

 

[kj_mustang]

Run the drain tube up onto the base slab and use a clamp to hold it in place.

 

[smokey0810]

New freon is supposed to be environmentally safe...lol

 

[Random Guy]

Safer. There is a difference. R410a (the new stuff) doesn't damage the ozone, but it does contribute to the greenhouse effect.

 

[jonathan75]

New freon is supposed to be environmentally safe...lol

Safer. There is a difference. R410a (the new stuff) doesn't damage the ozone, but it does contribute to the greenhouse effect.

"I read somewhere once that the reason R12 was phased out was because DuPont was about to lose the patent on it. DuPont spent a **** load of cash to lobby the decision and have it replaced with R22 which they still held a patent on. I always thought it was the environuts that caused this, I was pretty shocked to find out it was DuPont themselves." willyd

That was not the first place I heard someone talk about it was because of patent reasons. I am sure when the patent will expire on R-410A it will be "unsafe" as well.

 

[jonathan75]

I replaced the cage fan. It was 2.5 hours of ladder hell. Keep in mind I have a lot of electromechanical experience professionally and it was a frustrating fix. Of course if I had to do it again it would be much faster and not so frustrating. The learning process while your legs are getting bruised on a ladder for over 2 hours is not fun.

If you approach this repair from a very logical standpoint that if you remove enough screws you can get the fan out it won't work. I still have not got over the fear of copper lines filled with precious freon. You have to get over that fear of bending copper to get this repair done. The only way to get the fan out is to lift the left side of the coil out and up which bends the right side. This is only after you remove everything from the right side to get the motor out. The only picture I have is with the cover off, I was too frustrated and tired to take more pictures after I started getting into it.

Anyway it is done and running smooth and cold!

 

[jonathan75]

I finally found a bigger dryer vent. It was in the siding section and not where the other dryer vents are. I cut the gutter in the back side and slipped it over the line set and attached the dryer vent after removing the back side of it that would normally attach to the house. To make the line set level I had to put more of a curve in the line to take up some extra. I left too much because I didn't have confidence in my flaring skills yet so I gave myself more room so if I had to cut and flare again it wouldn't end up being too short. It is not perfect but it was my first time so next time hopefully it will look better. Maybe next time I will pay extra to get a real line set cover and keep the lines shorter so less extra hanging around.

Run the drain tube up onto the base slab and use a clamp to hold it in place.

Thank you for the tip.

 

[WVBrady]

...while your legs are getting bruised on a ladder for over 2 hours is not fun..:

I thought it was just because I was getting older.