It’s humid and sticky out there.
Luckily, the air conditioner can keep your family cool when nature cranks up the thermostat.
It would be a terrible shame if your air conditioner shut down unexpectedly!
It really would. We aren’t cartoon villains here.
Sometimes luck is just against you, and the air conditioner you trust to keep your family comfortable coughs, sputters and calls it quits.
A lot can go wrong with your air conditioner. Regular maintenance the only way to catch developing problems before they, well, develop, but nothing is 100%.
So here are the most common AC problems and our advice on the best fixes.
I don’t feel any air moving.
If air doesn’t move across your hand in front of the vents in the house, the fan on the outside part of your air conditioner might be sleeping on the job.
Luckily, 80% of cases resolve by resetting the breaker.
However, one in five cases are a little more complex and could include problems with the thermostat, control board, wiring or condensate pump reservoir.
Reset your breaker and if that doesn’t work, give us a call.
The air conditioner won’t turn on.
If you can’t get the air conditioner to power up, turn down the thermostat by 5 degrees, then 5 degrees more.
If you can’t force it to start by setting the temperature unreasonably low, check the breaker.
This could be a problem with a frayed wire somewhere in the system, or a loss of communication between the thermostat and air conditioner.
Contact us if you tried those steps and nothing apparent was wrong.
The air isn’t exactly cold.
This is one of the most common air conditioner repair issues. We would give you a simple answer if we could, but there just isn’t one!
Low refrigerant, a blocked condensate drain, a crusted air filter or any of a handful of problems could be the culprit.
Occasionally a house was originally equipped with an undersized air conditioner (which is why it’s important to buy from a reputable provider in the first place), and it just doesn’t have the capacity to work so hard for so long.
The only surefire fix it so call us and schedule a repair visit.
The air is hot. Why?!
This is usually a dirty air filter obstructing air flow, or something else getting in the way of normal airflow.
Make sure the outside unit is running and move any leaves or debris blocking parts of the air conditioner.
In rare cases (if you keep up with your maintenance), you could be low on Freon. This requires a professional visit.
What is this strange noise coming from my air conditioner?
Strange noises are strangely common.
You hear the air conditioner enough to know the normal and not-so-normal noises.
Air conditioners are made from a long list of moving parts, so the cause is (of course) difficult to address in a blog. But often a strange noise is a simple belt problem. If there is a bit of a squeal hidden in the sound, you can safely assume it’s a belt issue.
If you hear more of a grinding noise, the problem could be with the bearings in the motor.
Rattling noises are often just loose screws in the cover panels. Try tightening the screws before giving us a call.
Of course, endless nuanced problems to encounter with your air conditioner.
It’s built to last and stand up to hard work, but things happen.
If you aren’t sure what’s going on with your air conditioner, give us a call and we’ll help get it sorted out.
