Personal experience: Strange noise made by the compressor of my air conditioner (Split).

This happened one year ago, in December 2017. Just a week from the maintenance of the air conditioner, the compressor started to make a distinctive noise. I have to say I wasn't able to record a video, but I found a video where you can listen to the noise I am referring. The video was uploaded by "Lin Flores" on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-jldkf9OOAE.

After I turn off the equipment, I started to think what was causing the issue. Of course, the compressor was stuck. I checked the capacitor and it was in good condition. Nevertheless, I tried with a new capacitor but it didn't solve the problem. I consulted with a technician and he recommended to use a start kit. Basically, a start kit provides more power to try to unstick the mobile part of the compressor, but it didn't work either. Sadly, the compressor was broken.

It wasn't clear what caused the damage but the typical causes are:

• The external unit is not level.
• Overload of refrigerant.
• The refrigerant is contaminated.
• The capacitor is broken or it is not the right for your system.

In my case, an overload of refrigerant caused the issue. I was not in my house when the technician charged the refrigerant and I trusted he did a good job.

I strongly recommend monitoring the values of operation and follow the procedures established.

I hope you find this post useful, thanks for reading.