Posted: 12/2/2008 4:30:30 AM EDT
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Had a new heat pump put in last week. This is the first heat pump i have ever had.
Was outside this morning and noticed that the cooling fins around the outside unit is covered in ice. 
the copper lines running to the inside unit are not iced over, is this normal or should i call the installer? outside temp is around 27-29 degrees. |
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That's normal. What heat pump does is reverse the cooling from inside to the outside hence the icing. Unfortunately heat pumps don't do to well when it's really cold outside.
Question I have is there any outside thermostat with that unit that would shut down the unit for the meantime to defrost the iced outside coil (condenser coil)? You might want to ask the company that installed it or check the manual. The window units I use to work on back from the hotel facilities days uses a heating strip (electric heating) in conjunction with the outside thermostat. So when the outside coil (condenser coil) is defrosting the heating strip would kick in or when more heat is needed. |
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Perfectly normal for icing to occur in freezing weather. Most manufacturers have a timed defost cycle to remove the ice buildup, some like Trane have temperature sensors that only allow defrost when freezing is actually occuring.
40 years in heat and air work and I just installed a heat pump on my own house for the first time. Some people are slow to accept different technology. Note, if coil freeze occurs in cooling season, it typically means you have a low refrigerent charge. |
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Quoted:
Perfectly normal for icing to occur in freezing weather. Most manufacturers have a timed defost cycle to remove the ice buildup, some like Trane have temperature sensors that only allow defrost when freezing is actually occuring. 40 years in heat and air work and I just installed a heat pump on my own house for the first time. Some people are slow to accept different technology. Note, if coil freeze occurs in cooling season, it typically means you have a low refrigerent charge. Well, welcome, Evan! Why did it take a heat pump post to get ya off the fence? 
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