In this video, technician Jesse Claerbout covers how to prevent wire rubout on a residential air conditioning PM or service call easily.
Over time, crankcase heater and high-voltage wires can rub against the copper. These can cause all sorts of problems, including the nightmare scenario of an electric short blowing out the copper and leading to refrigerant loss.
On a normal maintenance call, we should check the wire location and look for the rubout potential. If there is rubout potential, we can insulate the copper line to prevent damage from wire rubouts. Of course, that doesn't address wire rubouts that have already caused damage, but line insulation is a great preventative measure.
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All right so here we have a typical residential heat pump system. Here you got your crank case heater and high voltage wires, just laying over top this copper over a long period of time. These can eventually completely rub out and short out up against the copper blowing. A hole in the copper losing all the refrigerant tripping, the breaker then you're gon na need a new compressor plug repair.

This pressure test, pull vacuum and all new refrigerant. Obviously, so we don't want that to happen so on our normal maintenance. We're gon na be checking for wires that have the potential of rubbing out. So this is a great potential for someone you knew or guys you may think, oh well, how do I strap these up, or how do i position these properly, where it's not about? One of my favorite things to do is just take a piece of insulation and no cut it to size and you're just gon na slip that in here now, obviously that's just gon na insulate it.

This one wasn't bad enough where the wires actually had to be repaired. This is just a preventative, prevent any major damage from these wires rubbing out. So we'll just position it like that, and just zip tie it in place and you'll be good to go all right. Hopefully that was helpful.

The rest. These wires look good, and now we don't have to worry about these rubbin out up against that copper there and we should be all set.

7 thoughts on “Preventing wire rubout on every service call”
  1. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Temple Brown says:

    Cutting zipties with wire strippers? ๐Ÿ™

    A good pair of flush cutters will leave that zip tie nice and flush so it will never snag your arm.

  2. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Jericosha says:

    thanks, will add this to my maintenance routine

  3. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Argenis Moreno says:

    ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‡ป๐Ÿ‡ช Are you in Orleans ?

  4. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Lionel Stoxstell II says:

    I always still find the wire zip tied to copper.(no insulation). I'm only a 1 1/2 tech trying to be blue collar and use this method thanks to this video however in Las Vegas it is extremely rough with all the hack companies out here. Service area Barrhaven??

  5. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Kenny Baker says:

    awesome! thanks for that

  6. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Edward Hvacr says:

    Good point

  7. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Rob Grant says:

    A simple fix that takes less than 10 seconds to prevent wires from rubbing can save expensive repairs later on. Thanks for sharing. ๐Ÿ™‚

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