Hot weather calls for air conditioning, and it’s alarming when your home’s unit won’t turn on. This can happen for one of many reasons, and some of these causes require professional repair. However, you can check out these potential solutions first.
Start With the Thermostat
Always start with the thermostat when trying to figure out why your air conditioning isn’t turning on. The problem could be something as simple as the thermostat being off when you thought it was on. The battery could be dead, too. If it’s a programmable thermostat, someone may have made a mistake when programming it, or it could be in need of a reset. One more possible cause is that you may have accidentally turned on settings for the heater instead.
Check the Circuit Breaker Panel
If checking those thermostat issues does nothing to fix the air conditioner, check the circuit breaker panel to see if any switches have flipped off. Try resetting those. If the air conditioner turns on, but the switch trips again, there’s an electrical problem with the circuit that needs immediate attention before you try to run the air conditioner.
Ensure That Wall Units Aren’t Blocked
If your air conditioner is a through-wall unit, make sure nothing’s blocking it. Many of these appliances are placed close to the floor, usually under a window. That means that furniture can restrict the airflow around the unit, preventing the thermostat from detecting the temperature in the rest of the house. That can delay the air conditioner from turning on when it should.
Look at the Filter
If you haven’t checked the filter in a while, do so. It may be heavily clogged, and this can cause air conditioner evaporator coils to freeze over, temporarily keeping the air conditioner from working. What happens is that whatever is clogging the filter prevents air from flowing into the air conditioner system. While this normally makes the system work harder, it can also cause the evaporator coils to cool so much that they freeze. This can lead to some air conditioning systems shutting down, or at the very least not cooling even though they appear to be running.
If you find frozen coils or see water in the drain pan, don’t run the air conditioner. Change the clogged filter, but switch the thermostat off. You can try running the fan to help move warmer air over the ice. Give an air conditioner company a call, too, to have your cooling system inspected. They can check to make sure the system hasn’t been permanently damaged.
If you’re in Salt Lake City, UT and need air conditioning repair, call Whipple Service Champions Heating, Cooling, Plumbing and Electrical as soon as possible so that you can start cooling your home again.
