Hi, Sharon,

I'm sorry for your experience. I have a kitchen full of Bosch appliances only one of which didn't develop issues after the first year of service. Not a Bosch fan.

Fortunately for you, there's a Bosch-loving HVAC replacement tech who frequents this forum. If he'll help (he continues to note that HVAC is an on-site, in-person job) it will be worthwhile, if only for the entertainment value. @Austinaircompanie, are you out there? Can you help?

Sorry Sharon, I hope your problem is resolved quickly and with warranty coverage. I've heard that some Bosch HVAC product control boards are very expensive, something north of $1,000.

CR Homes, sorry to hear of your poor Bosch experiences too.

Now I'm a Bosch loving contractor?

Seriously? Because I offer Bosch as a choice?

I am a Texas Licensed HVAC contractor. Regardless of what you choose --- whether it be Bosch, Trane, Ruud, Lennox, Carrier or any other brand what is virtually guaranteed?

It will again at some point in the future break. My job depends on it, because I do more than just install them.

Bosch is a choice I offer. Do I like them? There's much more to it than that. At the end of the day it's a choice.

Could things at some point go bad? Sorry to tell you but any brand can have similar or worse problems. I haven't had any customer with Bosch problems yet (things that I could pin on Bosch) -- a couple of them have had other problems unrelated to Bosch... but as with anything that clock is always ticking. This thought there is some perfect piece of equipment --- is to again sell you something else. Let's put a different brand name on your box all your problems will go away... my guess is another 3+ years or so. Those are the facts whether you want to be fair about it or not is up to you.

Sharon I remember you from 3 some years ago I feel your pain but there isn't a piece of equipment in the Bosch realm (what it does compared to something else) that wouldn't or couldn't give you similar or worse problems. I know that doesn't make you happy, those are the odds these days when it comes to HVAC.

My next door neighbor had me on a 3 yr old Amana -- bad variable speed blower motor. Had to wait a week or so to get that in. (not too bad, but the factory is right here in town so it takes a week for them to deliver it to the distributor? If honesty is a disease, I've got it.)

Another customer --- 2 speed Amana (2014) control board issue -- little over a week to get that in.

One that got away--- Trane system with condenser coil leaking about 9.5 years old. Maybe things go bad this customer finds his way back to me. He's got not one, but two Tranes at the end of the road warranty. Or the Trane dealer gets to keep his dealer status by selling new Trane equipment. Just keeping it real, nothing wrong with Trane... they break just as much or more than anything else. Problem like this particular one is very average for my area. Nothing special.

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It is more likely for me to repair. In order to repair, the unit must be broken. How old it is doesn't matter. It may matter to you, but those are odds.

This job is more about service than any other thing. Repair is a part of that.

My Bosch at my house is 3 years to the day. Haven't had any issues as of yet. The difference for me is that only 1 set of hands have touched it. (sometimes that is all the difference in the world)

If a problem develops, I am here to fix it... however it is decided to do that is irrelevant... it will break again. Like sands thru the washing machine so are the days of HVAC equipment repair.

Doesn't make it any less painful, I get it. But my momma told me there would be days like this. I've lost customers over things like this because certain people want to believe the falsity that equipment should never break.

@Austin Air Companie You did give me a lot of help three years ago! I don't hold you responsible for my Bosch unit, though lol.

Can you tell me what will be done to fix it? Will they just replace the board? Or will the whole unit need to be replaced? I'm fortunate in that I still have another heat source-- electric baseboards-- and that it isn't too cold here yet.

Could the failure of the board right after routine maintenance was done be related, or is it more likely just an unfortunate coincidence?

Bosch doesn't have replacement coverage. So depending on what is truly wrong I suspect they will replace the board. Some Bosch dealers may handle this situation differently if they replace the unit that would be out of the norm.

It could be a lengthy wait to get the board. These kinds of parts aren't typically stocked heavily. So getting one could be an expedition. There isn't a manufacture that doesn't face these issues when it comes to certain special control boards. So I know there is likely to be "brand based" rhetoric tossed around after me saying such things.

How I would handle the situation would be nothing more than choices. If you want to wait, you wait. If you want me to get you cooling again fast? That's what I'm here to do... those ideas have additional costs. Some may think this is not fair, I can understand that thought but it doesn't change anything. I exist for service, without pay I would not exist.

The thought that you buy a fully american made unit is long gone. Assembled here means what exactly. (This isn't for you Sharon, this is for the antagonists of the forum board)

Hopefully the Rep is able to locate locally to USA the parts you need to get it fixed.

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Failure of the board right after routine maintenance? it could be coincidence. Power fluctuations / power surge / brown out type issues could take a board like this out.

If while cleaning / water got in somewhere it shouldn't well that could do it too. I don't know there would be a way to know exactly unless someone confessed to messing up. If the machine worked after the mainenance was performed for even a day... then I don't think you could blame the maintenance.

With a comment 4+ times longer than the original post, the expert didn't directly answer the questions.

As far as goods "Made in USA" is concerned, are Bosch products made in the US?

It's never a concise answer, Elmer, it's more like a stream of consciousness... or maybe unconsciousness.

The latter.

With a comment 4+ times longer than the original post, the expert didn't directly answer the questions.

How many ways can a control board fail?

HVAC isn't a guessing game. I don't fix AC's and Heat Pumps remotely from a forum board. --- I am not in the business of pretending to work from home. A Monday morning quarterback, never suits up.... the role you two are always playing.

As many times as I say this you would think that the antagonists of the board would learn something.

Bosch is German engineered and made in China. This is no secret.

If you bought an American Assembled product of the major manufactures of similar equipment in the inverter class --- where do you suppose those control boards are made? Other parts like motors?

When there are parts shortages due to infrastructure type things like shipping --- that will effect all brands in this tier of equipment. (other brands in lower tiers can be effected as well. Assembled in USA only goes so far.)

There is no part fairy at the supply house. Those are people who don't pretend to work remotely either.

Board components? Eh, electronics, chips, and the like almost all come from the Far East and have for a long time. The brand of final products they find their way into doesn't change anything.

I can imagine you speaking to a customer needing a new system: " I recommend and sell three different brands, I can price out the right model for you. Brand A is manufactured here in Texas. Brand B is designed in the US but manufactured in Mexico. The one I like best is Bosch, it's made in China."

You'd never sell another Bosch in your little Texas town if you disclosed where it came from.

Ray,

You were the one who raised the "Made in the U.S.A." issue. It was in your first stream of semi-consciousness in this thread. That's the one where you spent beaucoup words and still offered nothing of substance to help the OP with their problem. As usual, your responses seem to be all about you. It would be a refreshing and welcome change if you provided some simple, straightforward, concise, and helpful answers to OP's questions.

CR Homes, he also gave himself a pat on the back for his honesty.

In that connection, I'm willing to bet that few or none of his customers who have purchased Bosch products from him were told before they signed their contracts that the equipment is made in China.

There's a good chance that if you look up the term "self aggrandizing," you'll find a picture of Ray wearing a shirt with a Bosch logo on it.

That's the one where you spent beaucoup words and still offered nothing of substance to help the OP with their problem. As usual, your responses seem to be all about you.

The builder thinks a forum board more than beaucoup words.

Let's pretend to do something in the eyes of a builder that has too much time on their hands?

Help is spelling out situations that may or may not exist except in the mind of a builder and a few choice home owners?

You can be certain I'm not wearing a shirt with a Charles Ross logo on it. --- You be you, I'll be me. I'm sure you won't like it and I am fine with that.

There isn't a brand that is fully USA made today. They are just assembled here with parts from all over the world.

The choice of Bosch or not is a complicated one. It's more about what it can do for you versus other choices. I have always said it is a choice and it's not necessarily for everyone. I chose Bosch for my own home primarily because it would pay for itself over time due to reduced utility bills.

I have documented my savings over the past 3 years because that is all about me. I like to self aggrandize to show you what I could do for you. Without me doing that you, the reader would be left to make a choice without that info.

Breakage is an unknown. If I new the future, maybe I would sell you something else. I don't pretend to know the future either.

Does the builder self aggrandize? Does he say hey I used to be a chemical engineer, but I failed at that so I took up home building? Does the builder say hey I am new to home building don't look at my work because I would hate to be caught self aggrandizing over things I actually do versus what I pretend to do in a forum board?

Yeah so much fun, so many ways to think about things... that is what you get from a forum board. Self aggrandizing rhetoric, politics, whatever your thoughts are you can put them here. They will never go away, so choose your words carefully because 9 times out of 10 they will expose you for the knuckle head we already know you to be.

OP: I suspect your problem was a power surge/lightning strike.

While possible if the only problem in the house is the HVAC --- not likely in a home that has other electronics.

You'd likely have more problems than just HVAC if this was the case. There are a number of ways these boards can fail... just like any other HVAC system.

Possibly, but we've had power surge and lightning damage over the years that didn't blow other electronics/appliances inside the home.

IIRC there was a TSB from Bosch about their control boards on the IDS 1.0 units. I could be mistaken, though.

"Possibly, but we've had power surge and lightning damage over the years that didn't blow other electronics/appliances inside the home."

A couple of years ago, we experienced a big power surge in one of the neighborhoods we build in. For whatever reason, it affected motors, but it didn't affect the electronic devices in the homes.

I wonder if the fact that electronic circuits (as on printed circuit boards) operate on DC rather than AC accounts for the difference? Perhaps whatever device or circuitry changes AC to DC for the PCB provides protection from the surges?

The feed to motors is AC, even for the newer ECM type that I believe do their own power conversion.

I've taken the time to make videos that show what that control board on the Bosch Inverter looks like. There are a myriad of things that can go bad that would render the board useless. Watch one of those videos and pause it when the video showcases that control board to see the marvel of modern day engineering. It's quite something to look at if you're into this sort of thing.

To argue a failure was due to lightning strike, power surge, brown out or whatever it's usually a guess. It can be very difficult to know if it was due to other means. However, if other electronics / appliances and so on were effected in the home --- that would be much more likely to be a power surge event as power surges will effect everything in the home that is plugged in.

I've visited homes in which the power surge event caused nearly everything plugged in to be lost. TV's, computers, refrigerators, HVAC equipment... anything plugged in -- you name it. That said this type of event is extremely rare. In over 29 years of HVAC, I have only witnessed it 3 times to this level of severity. --- thousands and thousands of HVAC service calls in that time frame. (More self aggrandizing, because to tell the story... well you know *beaucoup words* -you don't have a story without them.)

When there is a failure of this nature it's not uncommon to say it was power surge. It's a way to possibly make someone feel more comfortable as to something to blame it on. The product warranty is there to make certain the board didn't contain a defect... some single component failure on that board rendering it useless.

Now when I say things of this nature it makes it sound not such a good product. We're going to buy this expensive thing and worry about a single component rendering a costly part defective. In the grand scheme of things... what I know to be true today is that so far (for me at least) is that they have been very reliable in the 3+ years now that I've been offering them as a choice.

I've recently replaced a control board on a different brand 2 speed machine-- not because it failed in the true sense of what failure is but because of nuisance trips. It was sensing a fault that wasn't there and locking itself out, If you can imagine that.

Ray,

The OP's original question was "Anyone know anything about why this would happen and whether they’ll have to replace the entire unit?"

There are indeed many potential causes and we don't know whether the entire unit was affected, but sktn77a's 33-word reply "OP: I suspect your problem was a power surge/lightning strike. Not Bosch's fault but I suspect they will replace the part under warranty anyway. Shouldn't cost more than a couple hundred dollars labor." suggested two possible causes and an outcome that won't require the replacement of the entire unit. It was clear, concise, and in my opinion, helpful. Contrast that with your lengthy reply which took us on a journey to the land of leaky Trane coils, blown Amana blower motors and a whole bunch of other irrelevant stuff.

ha, ha, ha. (Charles)

In other words call a company for service, hope it works out, hope the guess is right. The part fairies are working over time to make sure those parts are there too.

Yeah so helpful. I classify it as fiction, because I don't phone it in on a forum board.

So every thread from now on the same thing over and over again? is helpful?

I question that logic.

Not to interruot the back and forth, but does anyone have any ideas about what the current wait for a new board might be? Our HVAC company seems to have not the slightest idea how long this might take, or at least they're not willing to tell us if they do know.

I have a bad feeling about this…

And i have to add, I really miss my heat pump. I hate having to use the electric baseboard units, they don't heat well, I'm constantly having to turn thermostats up and down because theyre so expensive to run. On the other hand, I'm very happy to have them, many people in my neighborhood, especially the flippers, have removed the units when they put heat pumps in. I could be sitting with no heat at all during our unusual cold front!

Hi, Sharon,

I'm sorry you've had such a bad experience with your BOSCH heat pump. I don't know what the lead time is for a replacement circuit board for your BOSCH heat pump. Just glad you have a back up heat source for your failed BOSCH heat pump while you wait for parts.

Not to interrupt the back and forth, but does anyone have any ideas about what the current wait for a new board might be?

Glad for the interruption Sharon, if you only knew. ;- )

Wish I could give you a specific time frame but different parts of the country could be different.

I would say just keep checking in weekly with your company so they don't forget about you. Tell them to keep prodding asking the distributor. That's about all you can do outside of spending more money and installing a temporary machine.

The antagonists will chime on about Bosch, but I had a Carrier heat pump earlier this year in which the home owner couldn't get a blower motor for their heat pump. I replace it with a psc motor to get them back up. However, a main board problem that isn't an option.

Next door neighbor to me chose Trane 3 years ago. Their HVAC contractor has been over there nearly everyday the past week. Another house kitty corner to me had Amana installed 3 years ago... it was a week wait to get that motor. Luckily that is a rental and was vacant at the time.

It's really easy to say or think you wouldn't have problems with something else... it's sometimes the nature of the beast. Mechanical equipment breaks regardless of brand.

Just keep yourself on the minds of your HVAC company, try to get them to give you a time frame... but they may not have an answer.

I wonder if the fact that electronic circuits (as on printed circuit boards) operate on DC rather than AC accounts for the difference? Perhaps whatever device or circuitry changes AC to DC for the PCB provides protection from the surges?

The board in question converts incoming AC volts (240v) to 380v DC 3 phase / which is then converted back to AC voltage and they control the speed by raising and lowering the hertz spectrum of the machine. This change in hertz is what cause the compressor as well as condenser fan to run faster or slower.

Electrical energy creates heat. So much so that the board is fastened to a heat sink. Heat is primarily what causes failures. Certainly a large enough power surge could do it, but I've seen Bosch units with surge protectors on YouTube still fail, the guy flipped the board around to show it was due to poor contact to the heat sink.

It would be no different if you chose a different brand of inverter, they have to have some method to control the heat of the electric energy produced by the board. Trane as an example has a small line coming off the suction line run thru a section of their inverter board. Yeah, I've seen failures with those as well.

Nearly all failure even outside of inverter driven the failure is "most of the time" due to heat. Lack of maintenance often times speeds the process of demise up. Capacitors fail due to heat.

Motors fail due to heat. Friction is kept at bay with lubed bearings, these are all permenantly sealed today. So you can't oil them... in time the heat police will show up and seize up that motor. This can lead to electrical failure. 90% of all HVAC problems are electrical problems. This doesn't mean you can't have other failures unrelated to electrical issues or a combination of the two. Partly why I like this field is the variety. Freon leaks again? ha, ha.

Poor electrical connections create loads or resistance across them --- this produces destructive heat too which eventually results in breakage. There isn't a mechanical HVAC system on the planet that isn't effected by this.

Heat destroyed this connection above.