Air Conditioner Repair Checklist
1. AC Won’t Turn On
There can be a couple of explanations why your air conditioning won’t cool: a tripped circuit breaker, wrong thermostat settings, a switched off switch or an overflowing condensate drain pan.
Tripped Circuit Breaker
Your system won’t start when you have an overloaded breaker.
To see if one has gotten overloaded, go to your house’s main electrical panel. You can spot this silver box on the wall in the basement, garage or closet.
- Confirm your hands and feet are dry before you touch the panel or breakers.
- Find the breaker labeled “AC” and ensure it’s in the “on” position. If it’s tripped, the lever will be in the middle of the panel or “off” spot.
- Quickly move the breaker back to the “on” position. If it instantly trips again, don’t reset it and call us at 519-296-4437. A breaker that keeps turning off might signal your home has an electrical issue.
Incorrect Thermostat Settings
If your thermostat isn’t telling your air conditioner to run, it won’t activate.
The main part is checking it’s set to “cool” and not “heat.” Otherwise your AC might not start running. Or you could receive warm air coming from vents since the heater is running instead.
If you rely on a traditional thermostat:
- Swap out the batteries if the monitor is empty. If the monitor is presenting garbled letters, get a new thermostat.
- Check the correct setting is showing. If you can’t update it, cancel it by decreasing the temperature and pushing the “hold” button. This will force your AC to work if programming is incorrect.
- Try setting the thermostat 5 degrees below the space’s temperature. Your AC won’t start if the thermostat matches the house’s temperature.
Once your thermostat is adjusted correctly, you should receive cool air promptly.
If you have a smart thermostat, like one manufactured by Nest, Ecobee, Lux, Honeywell or Bosch, go to the manufacturer’s website for troubleshooting. If you’re still having problems, call us at 519-296-4437 for support.
Shut-Off Switch
Your cooling equipment usually has a shut-down switch near its outside unit. This device is generally in a metal box mounted on your house. If your unit has recently been repaired, the device may have unintentionally been put in the “off” position.
2. AC Blows Warm Air
If your equipment is working but not providing cold air, its airflow may be obstructed. Or it could not have adequate refrigerant.
Clogged Airflow
Your unit’s airflow can be restricted by a plugged air filter or dirty condenser.
How to Change Your Air Filter
A filthy filter can cause a lot of issues, like:
- Lower comfort
- Frosted refrigerant lines or evaporator coil
- Inconsistent cooling
- Higher electricity bills
- Making your system stop working sooner
We propose installing new flat filters once a month, and pleated filters every three months.
If you can’t remember when you last changed yours, shut off your system fully and take out the filter. You can spot the filter in your furnace or air pump’s blower compartment. It may also be situated in an adjoining filter holder or wall-mounted return air grille.
Tilt the filter up to your light fixture. If you can’t see through it, you should get a new one.
5 Tips on Cleaning Your Air Conditioning System
Weeds, grass and bushes can obstruct your condensing equipment. This can reduce its airflow, lower its energy efficiency and affect your comfort. Here’s a method you can follow to get your system working well again.
- Shut off electricity totally at the breaker or external device.
- Remove yard waste around the air conditioner. Once you’ve removed bigger clutter within a two-foot range, you can use a fine-bristled brush or vacuum to slowly remove dust from the condenser fins. Deformed fins can also affect performance, so you can attempt to reshape them with a blunt knife.
- Take off the upper part of your system and pull out any leaves or sticks that has collected. Then wipe off the condenser fan with a moist cloth.
- Use a hose nozzle to slowly take off dirt on the fins from inside the unit. Make sure to avoid getting moisture on the fan motor.
- Replace the top and restore the power.
Low Refrigerant Levels
When cooling equipment doesn’t have ample refrigerant, they’ll struggle to remove heat and humidity from your house.
Here are a few signs that your equipment is seeping refrigerant:
- It takes a long time to lower the temperature in your rooms and you’re regularly lowering the thermostat.
- Air conditioning blowing through the ducts isn’t as cold as it should be.
- You’re hearing hissing or burbling racket when the AC works.
- Your evaporator coil is frosted because it’s having trouble taking on warmth.
Worried your unit is leaking refrigerant? You need a qualified heating and cooling service expert to repair the leak and restore the correct measurement of refrigerant in your unit. Get in touch with us at 519-296-4437 for support.
3. AC Not Blowing Enough Air
When it appears like you’re not receiving adequate amounts of cold air, there’s probably an obstruction or detachment within your cooling equipment.
- The beginning step is checking your air filter. Replace it if it’s filthy.
- Then check the registers are clear across your rooms.
- If you’re still not receiving enough cold air, you should have your ducts inspected by a expert like Taylor's Heating & Air Conditioning. Your duct system may need to be serviced or reconnected in limited space spots like your attic, basement or crawl space.