Air conditioner interior shell

OneMoBear · 03-10-2014, 04:39 PM

The bolts that secure our air conditioner interior shell keep backing out on the road. It seems to be a really stupid design but we're hoping we are missing a piece of the puzzle. We can finger thread the bolts opposite the knobs (this is seriously no fun) but the bolts on the knob end are loose too and even after removing the knobs, can't quite figure out how to get to them . . .

Thanks in advance!

Malinda

03-10-2014, 06:01 PM

Can't exactly picture the shell here in my den, but I removed mine a couple of years ago to replace a bad thermostat.

If all the screws are loose, my first suspicion is they were over tightened in the past, and they probably stripped the metal they screw into, excusing my grammar.

Take one out, go to the hardware, and get the next size larger, not in length, but screw size. Don't over tighten when reinstalling.

If you want to take some pictures, I'm sure others will offer solutions.

03-11-2014, 06:25 AM

I'm not picturing in my mind where in the AC you are having the problem. In my AC, some of the screws/bolts have springs that keep vibration-loosening to a minimum. Maybe those springs were not returned while someone did previous maintenance?

OneMoBear · 03-12-2014, 08:19 AM

Thanks MisterP! That is a good idea. TravlinOn . . . I know the screws you are talking about but these are long, like 4 or 5 inches, and are completely inside the cover. You can spot them by looking above the black plugs in the shell which are directly below them.

We had snow yesterday and had to put it up so pictures would be problematic right now ;-)

OneMoBear · 03-16-2014, 12:44 PM

So, we finally figured it out. To remove the interior shell you only need to remove the center section, then a couple of brackets in the middle on both sides and then back off the screws with the springs. Sounds easy enough but it took everything Gene had to get them out.

The picture shows the bolts that were actually the problem. The ones we couldn't see at first are actually longer than the ones in back I think. I guess they want to give you plenty on time to react before the AC falls on your head.