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Old 05-28-2021, 10:50 AM   #1
Bad Moon
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M.O.C. #18546
Dometic AC death rattle

Our second AC, Dometic low-profile, after only 10 hours of use has developed a death rattle. Fan seems to be out of balance or maybe came loose from the motor shaft. Is the fan accessible from the roof without having to remove the whole unit? And of course it is out of warranty. And of course it happened while we are staying in Las Vegas. Any help appreciated.
 
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Old 05-28-2021, 11:52 AM   #2
rohrmann
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Several years ago, we had our front A/C running, and all of a sudden it started vibrating like crazy and we quickly turned it off. I went up on top, removed the shroud and couldn't see anything wrong. Had the DW turn it on while I watched and it started vibrating. I finally figured out that the inside blower fan had broken, and when not spinning, it looked fine. Once it started spinning, it would get distorted and was rubbing on the housing. I was finally able to get the correct fan from Dyers, and that fixed the problem. Of course, this wasn't a low profile unit, but it will still have the same type parts. I do remember taking a small cable tie and securing the fan together where the break was and got it working until the new fan arrived. If you are still in Las Vegas, Desert Mobile RV Repair is the one we had do a couple repairs several years ago, excellent guys. 702-379-7966
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Old 05-28-2021, 05:29 PM   #3
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Thanks Rohrman. We are heading back north tomorrow. My son is an AC tech, so we will dive into it when we get back. He has a few theories what the cause and fix is.
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Old 05-28-2021, 06:46 PM   #4
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I've seen wasp nests throw a fan out of balance.
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Old 05-29-2021, 04:38 AM   #5
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Just curious...If it ran for 10 hours, could there be ice in there?
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Old 05-30-2021, 07:13 PM   #6
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The 10 hours is an estimate of the cumulative total number of hours. We typically only turned it on when it got really hot, until it cooled off enough for the living room unit could maintain.

My son says the fan balance weights sometimes come loose, or it could be the set screws that attach the fan to the motor shaft. I will know more when I get home and dig into it.
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Old 06-02-2021, 08:10 PM   #7
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Could be a thrown balancing weight or loose set screw as mentioned above. About 3 years ago we had a mud dabber make house in the a/c squirrel cage wheel. I was able to get it out from below with a long thin blade screwdriver & a small wire brush. Spraying it with some water helped out after most of the mud was removed to clean the blades. Problem solved. Make sure to wear your safety glasses for this job & put down a drop cloth below. I think they got in thru the dump vent which we have since kept closed. Hope u find the problem & it's an easy fix.
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Old 06-06-2021, 06:03 PM   #8
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We had a mud dauber nest in one of ours. Larger than my fist. Gave the same noises and vibrations….
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Old 06-06-2021, 06:04 PM   #9
Byron B
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We had a mud dauber nest in the fan in one of ours. Larger than my fist. Gave the same noises and vibrations….
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Old 06-06-2021, 06:38 PM   #10
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If it’s the condenser fan, the shaft is D shaped. The fan is held on by a clamp with a self threading screw. Seen no weights on plastic fan. Hail went thru shroud and busted one fan blade, we thought it was going to pop the tail lights out. Ours was not the low profile though.
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Old 06-07-2021, 08:53 PM   #11
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Update: Yes, it was a loose squirrel cage fan. Actually both fans were loose. A long reach 1/8" allen wrench tightened up the set screws.

For future reference: After accessing them from the top, I think I could have accomplished it easier from below.
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