Gaaaah…this is a lousy time for an a/c to not work.
This particular a/c unit (Zenith ZW5010) started to not drain and to spit a while ago, and manually tipping it out the window to drain it worked for a while, but eventually we were having to do it two or three times a day. So we bought a new one and put the old one out on the deck to flush out once we got a garden hose, which we finally did. We flushed it out with the hose yesterday, let it dry, put it back together, and meanwhile the one in the kitchen started to not drain out the back but rather into the window well. So we took that one out and put the one we flushed in that window. But now it doesn’t work AT ALL! The plug breaker trips every time we plug it in. The LED lights for a split second and then it turns off with the click of the breaker button.
It’s been 24 hours since we flushed it out…is it that it’s not dry yet? Is something seriously wrong that we need to actually get fixed? Anyone know? I’d like to figure out what went wrong with this one before I flush the one that was in the kitchen window, just in case it was the water that did it.
If it’s tripping the breaker as soon as you plug it in, there’s a short somewhere. Could be from the water, could be that you did something when you pulled the unit and reinstalled it.
Do you have a multimeter? I’d start by checking each of the prongs for a short to the ground prong.
As for not draining, instead of pulling it out, can you just see why it’s not draining clear the clog? Maybe just spray a hose in it while it’s still in the window?
We just went through this too. We have a small house built in the 1950s that we love because it is near the beach. Seven years ago we built a room on the back for my wife’s office and project room. The central air has never given that room enough heat and cool. This year the national heat wave forced us to do something about it.
At first we looked at window units, but could not find anyone to do the installation work. A friend suggested finding an electrician that works with the problems of mobile homes. These guys knew what they were doing.
FYI, Lowes has a new kind of room air conditioner/heater that is about the size of a mini refrigerator and has a vent about the size of a dryer vent. It was $500, and it works very well. Even though we rewired the house five years ago the new unit kept tripping the breaker. We ended up paying an extra $300 for a designated line that goes directly into the electric box. It works well, we are very satisfied.
As you have experienced the project is a pain in the neck. Good luck!
PS. The unit has a drip pan that can be emptied daily, but we just drilled a second hole in the wall, and stuck in a small hose that empties directly into the flower bed outside.