Troubleshooting Common Air Conditioning Problems

It’s always on the hottest day of the year that your air conditioner decides to give up. If you’re starting to have some issues with your system, here are some of the ways you can identify that problem and troubleshoot it:

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1. Your system is running but very little cold air is coming out

If you are experiencing this problem, your filter is likely clogged by dirt, dust, and other debris. No matter how hard your system works, it can only push so much air through that filter. It is working harder and harder to keep your rooms cool, but because it is essentially trying to push air through a solid sheet of dust, it is very difficult, and only a very little bit of the air it is working so hard to cool will get into your rooms.

The solution to this problem is simple: clean your filter or replace it.

2. Your system is running, but the air is not cold

You’ve turned your thermostat all the way down the sixty and your system is pushing lots of air into your rooms, but that air is just not cold. The most common reason for this problem? You are out of refrigerant.

This probably means that you have a refrigerant leak, which is one of the most common problems that HVAC system face. A trained technician should be called out to determine whether you are just low on refrigerant or whether you have a serious leak that needs to be repaired before new refrigerant is added to your system.

Do not add refrigerant to your system yourself unless you are certain you know which kind to use and how much to add to your system.

3. Your system will not turn on. You try to turn on your system, but it simply will not turn on

While there may be many reasons your system is refusing to start up, one of the most common issues is an electric control failure.

This problem is the most common when you have installed a system that is too large for the building it is designed to cool, causing it to frequently turn on and off, wearing out the fan and compressor controls.

The solution? Call a Florida AC technician to come out and perform a service call to see if this is an issue and to replace the connections and contacts.

4. Your system does not seem to know what temperature it is

air conditioner repair SarasotaIt feels warm in the room to you and normally, your air conditioner would already be kicking on, cooling off the room before it gets too hot.

However, right now, it is not turning on, even though you’ve checked and your thermostat is at the proper setting. This could be an issue with the thermostat sensor, which can be knocked out of alignment, so that it no longer is able to correctly determine what temperature your rooms are.

5. Your system is running, but the air smells funny

This might not always be a serious problem, but air that has a smell may be caused by dirt in your vents, dust gathering on the air conditioner itself, or a more serious leak or similar issue.

It is common for the air to smell strange the first time you turn on your air conditioner after a long winter, but if the air continues to smell funny, this could be indicative of an issue in your system that you need to solve. Check your vents and the exterior unit. If they look clean, call an experienced AC technician to examine your unit.

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