Heat Pump Blowing Cool Air, Except When in Aux. Heat


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Old 11-05-18, 07:00 AM
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Heat Pump Blowing Cool Air, Except When in Aux. Heat

For a bit of reference, I worked with PjMax on rewiring the thermostat for this heat pump when my family and I moved into this house, early this last Spring. Here is the link to that thread: New Nest Setup for York Handler

I am still using the final wiring diagram that Pete gave me at the end of that thread. I've just noticed that in standard heating status, the air coming from the registers throughout the house isn't exactly warm. It's not A\C cold, but not warm.

This morning was a pretty cold one and when I got out of bed, my Nest thermostat showed that it was running in Aux. Heat mode. I hadn't seen that yet this Fall. I have the thermostat setup for Heat Pump Balance in the Balanced setting, so Aux. Heat only ran for a few minutes before it reverted back to standard heat.

My question, being unfamiliar with Heat Pumps, is is it normal for the air coming from the registers to be fairly cool in standard heat mode? Should I be concerned about this, especially with much colder weather moving into our area fairly quickly?

As always, any assistance is greatly appreciated!
 
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Old 11-05-18, 08:34 AM
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Make sure the heatpump is actually heating -> the air coming out should of the outdoor unit should be cold, and the large insulated pipe very hot.

The supply air won't be as hot as from aux heat or furnace, but it should be 20 to 30F warmer than return air unless it's brutally cold outside.

If it's in heating mode and in the 30s and 40s the supply air is barely warmer than return, it may be leaking refrigerant.
 
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Old 11-07-18, 11:33 AM
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Forgive my ignorance, but I'm not clear on what you're saying here. I'll upload some pictures of the outdoor unit and its connections when I get a chance to get out there and take some, but everything out there seems to be functioning properly, as of last check a day or so ago.

My biggest concern is with why my house can't seem to maintain temperature. It was 21 degrees this morning and, once again, my Nest showed it was running in Auxiliary Heat mode in order to struggle to reach 71 degrees. I have since lowered the temperature setting to 70, so that it wouldn't run all day. However, it's a very cold day today and now it's struggling to retain a 70 degree temp inside, so we're back to running constantly.

I am guessing that if it's leaking refrigerant, as you suggested, and it's not immediate obvious to me, I probably need to call a pro.
 
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Old 11-07-18, 01:10 PM
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Yes, refrigerant issues would need a tech to handle.
 
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Old 11-07-18, 01:14 PM
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Would a refrigerant leak not affect auxiliary heat?
 
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Old 11-07-18, 02:03 PM
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No, completely different heating sources aside from using the same air handler to distribute heat.
 
 

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