.Since you didn't say why the breaker & buss bars were replaced I'll guess that the breaker failed due to loose connections (breaker/buss bars burned). if that was in fact the case, then the home was likely receiving low voltage, which is really hard on motors.

Tom

The compressor might have failed and caused it to draw excessive current.

And the Zinsco breaker might have failed to trip and that exess current damaged the bus bars.

quote: Can the failure of the breaker cause the compressor to burn out?

Maybe!

Inversely, the compressor can cause the breaker to burn out!

My suspicions are the compressor failed, thus taking out the breaker and the bus.

Not to cause an arguement, but I've dealt with Zinsco in the past & they are just a cut above FPE & I would lean towards the breaker being the cause of the trouble. Coupled with it being outdoors, where many inferior breakers bite the dust, I'd vote for the breaker being the cause.

However, since we don't have the smoking & glowing parts to examine, and there is a potential here for some hard feelings between the tennant & landlord, maybe there should be some friendly negotiation between the two in order to avoid a trip to court. If that happens, the lawyers will make more than the cost of the compressor & breaker combined.

Tom