Compressor running but not pumping

I went to a packaged unit where the customer said it was cooling well and suddenly it stopped. When I got there, as soon as it started the condenser fan wasn’t running and I was glad because I didn’t want anything strange on a side job I reluctantly took at 8PM at after starting early and ending late at work on another 100+ day (with my laundry hamper full at home, stomach empty, and work the next day). I pushed it and it ran. The capacitor was completely dead, I changed it and the motor started up on its own for the time being. I was itching to get out of there and the guy wanted to call his wife downstairs to confirm it was cooling with a thermometer gun. I could hear the compressor on and he said someone added gas last week and it’s been been working fine, so when he told me she said it’s not cooling I thought she was checking the return or something. I’d come back up with only my impact, so I went back down and checked inside. Sure enough, no cooling. Went and got my gauges and bag, back to the roof, found completely equalized pressures as the compressor was running. Confirmed my gauges were working and closed, same. Checked the amp draw and it was close to RLA. I’ve seen bad valves pressures but not this. Am I missing something? I forgot to check for pressure switches, and if it suddenly stopped cooling that day and he turned it off, even if he tried it a couple more times, I would think the compressor would turn off on overload and not get damaged. I asked my coworker and he said “like you said, it’s not pumping.”

if you can hear compressor running , and your meter confirms amps , and pressures are equal , Id say the pump attached to the motor is done for

Originally Posted by DavidSFVLA

I went to a packaged unit where the customer said it was cooling well and suddenly it stopped. When I got there, as soon as it started the condenser fan wasn’t running and I was glad because I didn’t want anything strange on a side job I reluctantly took at 8PM at after starting early and ending late at work on another 100+ day (with my laundry hamper full at home, stomach empty, and work the next day). I pushed it and it ran. The capacitor was completely dead, I changed it and the motor started up on its own for the time being. I was itching to get out of there and the guy wanted to call his wife downstairs to confirm it was cooling with a thermometer gun. I could hear the compressor on and he said someone added gas last week and it’s been been working fine, so when he told me she said it’s not cooling I thought she was checking the return or something. I’d come back up with only my impact, so I went back down and checked inside. Sure enough, no cooling. Went and got my gauges and bag, back to the roof, found completely equalized pressures as the compressor was running. Confirmed my gauges were working and closed, same. Checked the amp draw and it was close to RLA. I’ve seen bad valves pressures but not this. Am I missing something? I forgot to check for pressure switches, and if it suddenly stopped cooling that day and he turned it off, even if he tried it a couple more times, I would think the compressor would turn off on overload and not get damaged. I asked my coworker and he said “like you said, it’s not pumping.”

Talk to your boss about the findings, see what he says!