Obstruction of air flow of the condensing unit:

	Refrain from the urge to build a shed, frame or cover for the condensing unit.  
	It is designed to be able to withstand the elements of the outdoors and must be 
	allowed to "breathe" properly.  A minimum of five feet of totally free air space 
	is necessary for the fan's exhausted air before it should encounter any objects.

	Don't forget that foliage will also obstruct the air coming into the condenser.
	Additionally, be mindful that the best ventilation of the air around the unit will 
	be more efficient.  If hot summer exhausted air is bounced off anything and is allowed 
	to recirculate into the unit, the temperature of the unit is increased dramatically 
	and your operating cost will be higher for it and the life of the unit will be shortened.

Damage the unit while gardening or circuit breaker resetting:

	Constantly I encounter control wires to the outside unit cut in two with weed 
	eaters and trimmers. Often times the transformer for the controls 
	is burned because the wires were also shorted together. These control wires 
	are usually just 24 VAC (voltage alternating  current) and are relatively 
	harmless.  Because of that, often they are not shielded near the unit and 
	are easily cut by careless weed  removal and a lack of knowledge by your 
	gardener or grandson as they clear the undergrowth. Dogs love to chew and 
	pull them loose.   They really need to be shielded from this abuse.

	Another major damage that occurs is to the fins of the condenser coil.  Weed 
	eaters will cut grass well, but can also cut the bark off small trees and just 
	as quickly flatten huge areas of the coils on the outside condensing unit.  
	It's a big problem because air can no longer go through and do its work and 
	the efficiency of the unit is decreased again.  If this persists each mowing, 
	irreparable damage will result and the coil  or the unit will need replacement.  
	Big Bucks!

	Another very common error that may greatly damage this unit is continual resetting 
	of the circuit breaker.  If the breaker trips, something caused it.  I suggest you 
	reset it once and if it trips again, find and fix the problem or call someone who 
	will.  If you continually reset the breaker and make whatever is the cause keep 
	happening, it may very likely cost you a lot of money.  Many times a wire connection 
	on a compressor will be faulty and the homeowner resets the breaker several times 
	that night and during the next day or even longer and sooner or later the compressor   
	"gives up the ghost". You buy a new one or replace the outside unit unnecessarily.
	  
	A proper repair could have saved you hundreds of dollars.


			Dogs allowed near the condensing unit:

	Since I mentioned animals above, let me share a little-known fact about dogs and 
	the condenser coil fins.

	These fins are made of aluminum and the urine of male dogs will react as a strong 
	alkali on that area of the fins and they will powder-up, crumble and fall off the 
	unit.  You end up with a huge hole in the condenser coils or an area of dead 
	aluminum mass that will either pass unused air or will be too dense a mass of 
	gunk to pass any air through that area of damaged fins.  Needless to say, this is
	bad.

	Animals should not be allowed within ten feet of the condensers. Dogs love to lay 
	in the moving air of the intake of the unit and the fins of the coil fill solid 
	with their hair and cost you money.  It is nearly impossible to get out of the coil.

I recommend, when the decor permits, that the condenser be fenced from animals.  
In mobile home conditions, where there may be exposed duct, this is even more 
important.  One hole in a Return Air Duct can cost you hundreds of dollars in 
a single season if it is not repaired immediately.

If you surround just the unit with fencing, then remember to:

	• Allow at least three feet of clearance all around it for servicing 
	   of the unit.
	   
	• Please install a gate in the fence. The gate of any fence to the condenser 
	   should be large enough to carry a complete unit through it. You may need a new 
	   one some day.
	   
		If you must place a lock on the gate, then please know where the 
		key is located and make sure other family members know where it is 
		located as well. Usually, what I encounter is that this key is so 
		seldom used that when it is really needed it can't be found at all 
		and the lock won't work well if it is found.

	•  Don't expect the service technician to climb over the fence with 
	   his forty pounds of tools and his six trips back and forth to the vehicle.
		
	• And please turn OFF THE AUTOMATIC SPRINKLER SYSTEM.  Don't even run
	   it the night or morning before you expect the service man to show up to 
	   walk in your grass and through the shrubs and into your living room.

	• Don't let your fencing contractor place that privacy fence directly 
	   against the condensing unit either.  He probably doesn't know not to do this, 
	   but you must or you will be asked to move it some day soon. Many have been 
	   placed right up against the control panel and service is all (or almost) 
	   impossible and the safety of the repairman is really jeopardized.
 

       If your service person has to lean over the unit and thus placing 
          himself in danger from electrical hazards, then he or she may or may not 
          be able to service your unit well.  Would you, if you knew your life were 
          "on the line" with every move you make?

Blowing grass mower debris into the unit:

Probably the most common thing that fills the fins of the condenser coils is the 
fragments of the scattered remains of the grass thrown into the air toward a RUNNING 
condensing unit.  A three ton condenser "sucks-in" about 2,500 cubic feet of air per 
minute as it runs. Even if the unit is not running, the wet remains of the grass and 
dirt will stick to the unit like mild glue and then be sucked in the first time it 
comes on next cycle.

All you have to do to completely eliminate this problem is to turn off the air 
conditioner while you mow on that side of the house and simply direct the mower to 
blow the rubble the other direction.  After it settles and the air is again clear, 
then turn it back on. That's not a lot of trouble, but it sure does a very good 
thing to help keep the unit clean and efficiently operating and lasting as long 
as possible.

Stacking things on top of the condensing unit:

It doesn't sound like much to lay a coiled garden hose, two spray nozzles and a 
remote sprinkler on the top of an upflow condenser, but the restriction of air 
is a big deal.  Simply avoid this practice if you like to save money.

Planting prickly or wild-growing things near 
the unit:

If your yearly (or sooner) service visit from the professional finds an 
overgrown thorny rose bush engulfing the unit, how well do you think he 
or she is going to service it?  Have mercy on them and also get your 
moneys worth--just don't do it.

Remember, as you plant a beautiful garden of flowers or vegetables covering 
the ground around the unit, that it will need to be serviced and tool boxes, 
footsteps and garden hoses will have to get in there on the next visit from 
the service technician. 

It is really a good idea to partition-off a nice area around the unit and 
fill it with a decorative layer of  rocks. This will not only help to keep 
the feet of the repairperson clean (they will surely have to go inside your 
home before they are finished), but it will greatly reduce the amount of dust 
and splashed dirt, etc. that gets into the coils of the condenser. Again 
saving you money!

Excessive fear that the lines' insulation is missing:

The refrigerant lines are the copper tubes that come from within the house 
that are attached to the cooling coils and make their way under the slab, 
through the attic or under the house to connect to the compressor and 
condenser coils in the outside unit. One of these tubes, the larger of the 
two, is always insulated with tubing insulation--usually black and spongy. 

The purpose of this insulation is mostly to prevent the moisture that will 
form on this cold tube from dripping onto the interior of the house. Near 
the outside unit it makes little difference if it is insulated  because 
you could care less if it drips on the grass.

So if the dogs chew it off or it deteriorates and falls off or is knocked 
off by the weed cutting, etc. it is of no importance.

But, inside the house or in the attic it is VERY important and should be 
inspected if you have any moisture on surfaces below the tubing set. This 
can be a starting point for termites and wood rot, etc. The tubing insulation 
needs to be in perfect condition and sealed from the air at every joint. Over 
the years, it will harden and contract some and the joints will draw apart.  
This needs to be repaired.  It is amazing how much water can form on this 
cold suction line.