AC/ Heat issues

[dpuckett]

I finally have my W350 up far enough mechanically that last week I started it up and tried to turn on the AC. Nothing. Replaced bad fuse. Blew the fuse. It was starting to rain, so I left it for the time. WHere should I start looking?

I was thinking try it on VENT first and see if it still pops. If not, I know it's in the AC circuit. If so, it's elsewhere. Then unplug the blower motor and do the same thing. What else is there to check? common problems?

Daniel

[GO OVRIT]

Can you turn the compressor by hand? It could be a bad blower motor resistor or a blower motor. Possibly a bad compresor clutch switch. It can always be a bare wire somewhere too.

[dpuckett]

I got into it today, and narrowed it to the control unit head. Are these repairable? Or do I just get a new one? Unless I could get one locally for nearly free, used is out of the question.

Daniel

[dpuckett]

I swapped a known good AC heat control unit from my d350 to my W350, and the control unit wasnt the problem. As long as I turn nothing on, I am fine. The instant I push the VENT button, 'POP' goes the fuse. With everything else unhooked, and a known good control unit, this tells me it's in the wiring.

When installing my headlight switch (W350), I noticed the little black single spade connector (with 2 wires going to it) had one wire with the insulation burned off it; the other wire was fine. Could this be related to my AC issues? As far as I can tell in my diagrams, the grounds all run together onto one common point.

I hooked an ohmmeter to the hole for the fuse. I stopped at 1000ohms. The wiring looks good, no obvious burned connections (anywhere along the line). What gives? I am at a loss now, short of tearing all the tape off every wire loom that is even remotely related to the AC, but I dont want to if there is an alternative. The instant fuse popping makes me think it is grounding out somewhere......

Any ideas? Electrical stuff hits me about mid-forehead- I understand some of it, but most of it is beyond my current skill level.

DP

[PToombs]

Daniel check all grounds. The burnt wire by the headlite switch is the clue. Something too much is grounding thru that wire.

[dpuckett]

Pete, you were right. I unhooked all the cobbling by the previous owner(s), and redid that ground, and now all is well.

As an added bonus, the AC is almost as cold as the Dakota. I went down interstate yesterday, and even with the evening sun shining on me, never got too warm in the cab. These ACs just arent made for 134A with a club cab and OEM sized (R12) components.

DP

[PToombs]

Sometimes I get it right! Glad you got it fixed. It sucks without AC. It's been 90 and sticky here for the 2nd day, tomorrow too, plus T-storms.