Lost an hour on a service call this morning because a controller board had a loose screw from the factory

Pulled a 2016 model in a downtown office building and the main relay terminal screw was barely finger tight, had my meter out for 45 minutes before I spotted it - anyone else run into this on newer units?

2 comments

2 Comments

thomas_brown21d ago

Had a similar thing happen on a rooftop unit at a strip mall last summer. Spent over an hour tracing a intermittent power drop on a 2018 model only to find the main lug on the contactor was barely snugged down from the factory. Makes you wonder how many of these units are just slapped together on a Friday afternoon before a long weekend.

nora5421d agoMost Upvoted

I read an article last year that said a lot of these factory defects come down to the torque specs not being followed. Something like 1 in 10 units tested had at least one loose electrical connection from the assembly line. It's crazy when you think about it, because a snug lug takes maybe 30 seconds but causes hours of troubleshooting later. I still remember a service call where the unit kept tripping the breaker, turned out a wire nut inside the control box was barely twisted on. Makes you wonder if they even have quality checks at some of these plants.