Our Shepard chewed through the red and white wire coming from the AC unit to the house which kept the unit running but the air warm. We split what was left and re-connected, it is 111 in Las Vegas, but would like to correctly repair with a new wire. Can this be done fairly easily? We are not sure if we can just remove from both the unit and the terminal on the house or if this wire is part of the unit or runs through the house. Thank you.

I'm guessing that this is the very small wires, not the power wires because the power wires are normally encased in sealtite and connected to the disconnect.

If doggie is that aggressive, then doggie may do it again. What I would suggest doing is putting a weather proof junction box on the wall and running a SEPARATE piece of Sealtite (grey tube) into the AC unit.

It's not uncommon to splice the thermostat wires on the outside. Care must be done when doing so with heat shrink preferably one with an inside adhesive for the outer covering and providing a drip loop. Because of doggie issues, I don't recommend doing it the way it was.

EDIT: If they were the power wires, they should be in Sealtite anyway and attached to the disconnect on the house.

Red and white suggests low voltage.

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Originally Posted by KeepItSimpleStupid

I'm guessing that this is the very small wires, not the power wires because the power wires are normally encased in sealtite and connected to the disconnect.

If doggie is that agressive, then doggie may do it again. What I would suggest doing is putting a weather proof junction box on the wall and running a SEPARATE piece of Sealtite (grey tube) into the AC unit.

It's not uncommon to splice the thermostat wires on the outside. Care must be done when doing so with heat shrink preferably one with an inside adhesive for the outer covering and providing a drip loop. Because of doggie issues, I don't recommend doing it the way it was.

EDIT: If they were the power wires, they should be in Sealtite anyway and attached to the disconnect on the house.

Red and white suggests low voltage.

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These are small wires I believe they are for the thermostat, that is what I read. We have fenced in the area but need to repair correctly to avoid the shrink issue. Can we remove from both the AC unit and house easily and replace?

Easily is a relative term. If I had to do it at home, I'd have to bust up some concrete and route over some cabinets that wer enot there when it was originally put in.

There is nothibg wrong with the solder and heat shrink issue.

There is also nothing wrong with putting a junction box, say in the cellar

And there is nothing wrong running it all the way back to the furnace.

Just turn off the furnace power and keep the same colors if you splice. It's only 24 VAC, so it won't hurt you, but it can blow out the transformer in the furnace. There may be a small fuse in the furnace. There may not be.

The junction box outside with sealtite is not bad either. When the unit has to be replaced, there may not be enough wire for the new unit.

The BEST option depends on an assessment and knowing the repair techniques. I see three in my xtal ball:

1. Replace all the way back to the furnace. Could be easy. Could be hard.

2. Junction box outside and sealtite. Again, could be easy. Could be hard, but might have been easier than a fence. Depending on your fence, it could also have given better airflow.

3. Junction in an intermediate point inside the house. Could be easy. Could be hard.

Exterior splices need to be soldered. Drip leg and use heat shrink.

Wirenets can be used in an interior or exterior junction box. My preference is DIN terminal strips with a wire protector.

Take your pick. All have advantages and disadvantages.

Getting a short put up of tstatcable might be your biggest obstacle. Getting it from an installer might be possible. Home depot has some varieties and so does your local hardware store by the foot. Standard put ups are about 250 feet.

Shutdown power to your indoor and outdoor units, run a wire alongside the new one from just inside all the way to the outdoor unit. Splice the indoor connection and connect the outdoor to terminals, and Bob's your uncle. Or just re-splice the new connection your got and use some shrink wrap tubing to seal it.

And get doggy a chew toy.