Keeping Your AC System Cleaner

A Few Tips To Help Determine Which Part Of Your Air Conditioner Needs Repaired

by Yolanda White

Having an air conditioner quit working in the middle of the summer can be frustrating and can make your home quite uncomfortable. It is going to require a call to an HVAC company to have them send a technician to the house. While you could wait until the technician arrives to get a quote on the repair costs, if you can give the person answering the phone some information about what is going on, they can often get an idea of the problem and let you know an approximate cost right then. Of course, it may be impossible to guess at the problem, but if you can let them know where the problem seems to be, they can be a bit more prepared when they show up at your place.

Blowing Hot Air

If the unit is blowing hot air, the problem is often due to a lack of refrigerant. This is generally a simple fix and will not cost you much money. The unit will keep running because the temperature will never go down. This could cause other issues because the system is working too hard. 

No Air Blowing

When the unit kicks on but you do not feel any air coming out of the vents, it could be due to a broken fan, broken blower, worn out or dirty condenser, a bad capacitor, or blocked air flow. Clean all the vent filters, and check to make sure that the outside portion of the unit is clear of all debris so the air can get into the system. If all is well there, let the AC repair technician know so they can bring the appropriate parts to get the system working again.

Not Turning On

If the unit is never kicking on, the problem could be with the thermostat. Make sure that you have set the temperature lower than the inside temperature. If you need to turn it way down for the system to kick on, the problem is with the thermostat, and you can replace that yourself. When the issue is not the thermostat and you have checked that the electrical breaker has not been tripped, the issue could be with the motor or capacitors and is probably going to be on the more expensive side to address.

If you have kept your filters clean and had regular maintenance on the air conditioning system, there is a good chance that the technician will have caught a problem before it got to the point of keeping your AC from not working. However, as the unit ages, things will start to go wrong regardless of how well it is maintained. Contact an HVAC company at the first sign of a problem to ensure it doesn't cause the whole system to need replacement.

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