Picture this nightmare: It’s hot outside, and you’re looking forward to getting home to relax in the cool breeze of the AC. Uh-oh. The AC is not cooling! No matter how long it runs, your home stays warm and uncomfortable. But why?
When an AC unit takes forever to cool off your home (or doesn’t cool at all), it means higher energy bills – and the issue could get even worse (and more expensive to fix) if you wait.
Let’s go through some common air conditioner troubleshooting steps you can do yourself, explore quick fixes, and discuss when it’s best to call an AC pro!
AC Not Cooling: Cooling Coil Troubles
Cooling coils are a key element of your AC system. They allow refrigerants to extract heat from your home.
Cooling coils use many very thin tubes or fins through which refrigerant flows. This design maximizes the size of the contact surface between the refrigerant and the air for one good reason: heat exchange.
When warm indoor air blows over the indoor coils, the refrigerant absorbs its heat, going from a liquid state to a gas form. Cool air comes out, creating a refreshing breeze in your home.
The refrigerant in gas form continues its journey to another set of outside coils. There, a reverse process happens. The refrigerant turns back into a liquid form as the heat evaporates through the outdoor coils.
If your AC isn’t cooling, your first step should be to do a quick visual inspection of the coils. Remember: They maximize the exchange surface between the air and the refrigerant. Dirty or clogged frozen coils can limit the heat exchange and cause your AC to malfunction.
Another common issue is restricted airflow causing the coils to freeze, creating a barrier to heat exchange (hint: restricted airflow is usually due to a dirty AC filter).
To clean your AC coils:
- Outdoor coils: Remove dirt and vegetation that accumulate around your outdoor unit. Use a brush or a hose to clean the coils through the vented housing.
- Indoor coils: The indoor coils are inside the air handler unit, which is usually near the furnace. If you’re not sure where they are located, it’s best to have an HVAC pro examine them.
Troubleshooting a Faulty AC Compressor with Airstream Services
Your AC coils are clean, but you’re still not getting cool air. Now what? It could be the compressor.
When refrigerant absorbs heat through your indoor coils, it becomes a low-pressure gas. The compressor’s role is to increase the pressure (and temperature) of the refrigerant. Why? Heat moves from warm to cold. When the refrigerant comes in contact with the cold coils located outside, the heat exchange is much more effective if the refrigerant is in a high-pressure form.
A bad compressor means the refrigerant stays in its low-pressure form, and the heat exchange isn’t as effective. This causes some of the heat to keep cycling through your system and makes it difficult to cool your home.
The solution? You’ll need to have a technician repair or replace your compressor. You can do a quick visual inspection by opening the condenser unit, but it’s best to leave it to the HVAC pros since most compressor problems will be internal.
Refrigerant Leak
A refrigerant leak caused by a damaged conduit means your AC system doesn’t have enough refrigerant to transport heat. What are the signs?
- Loss of cooling power.
- Hissing sounds.
- High humidity in your home.
- Frozen coils.
- High energy bills.
A leak can be hard to diagnose unless it happens on a visible section of the conduit. In that case, you’ll see oily residues or ice crystals. A sweet smell, or scent that reminds you of nail polish remover can also indicate a refrigerant leak.
Fixing a refrigerant leak isn’t a DIY project. Refrigerant contains toxic and flammable chemicals (the danger varies based on the refrigerant product used and how serious the leak is). Remember that inhaling refrigerant can cause headaches, difficulty breathing, and other problems.
If you suspect a refrigerant leak, it’s definitely time to call an emergency AC repair Murfreesboro service – sooner rather than later.
Easy DIY AC Fix: Dirty or Clogged Filter
Air circulates through your HVAC system through a filter designed to catch impurities and improve your indoor air.
This filter can only hold so much dust and airborne particles while still allowing airflow, so you need to change it every two to three months as part of your routine HVAC maintenance schedule.
What happens if the filter gets dirty? Your AC fan will work harder to circulate air inside the system, resulting in higher bills – but unfortunately, your AC won’t cool your home.
Because dirt builds up over time, a restricted airflow isn’t always a drastic change. The good news is that checking your HVAC filter is a quick and easy DIY project:
- Locate the air handler or return duct next to your furnace. It should have a slot for the filter.
- Pull out the old filter and slide in a new one, inserting it in the correct direction.
If you’re unsure where the filter goes, ask your HVAC tech to show you the next time you schedule an HVAC checkup!
Time for a New Thermostat?
A dirty or damaged sensor can fail to read the temperature inside your home, which means your AC won’t come on when it should. A bad thermostat can also fail to relay this information to the AC system.
There are a few quick and easy DIY fixes you can try:
- It might be obvious – but make sure the batteries are still good in the thermostat.
- If you have a hardwired thermostat, check for blown fuses or a tripped circuit breaker to rule out electrical problems.
- Clean your thermostat with a soft brush (or compressed air) if it looks dusty.
- Check the user manual and follow the steps to recalibrate your thermostat. This can solve a wide range of issues with the temperature sensor.
Replacing your thermostat is a fairly simple DIY project, but a pro can help install and program a smart thermostat if yours has gone bad. On average, switching to an Energy Start smart thermostat can reduce your heating and cooling bills by 8%!
AC Repairs With Airstream
Is your AC not cooling? If you’ve tried these troubleshooting steps and can’t figure out what’s happening or suspect an issue that is best left to the pros, it’s time to call Airstream.
Our HVAC experts will thoroughly check our AC system, look for these common problems, and much more. We’ll fix the issue and put together a maintenance plan to keep your AC system in good shape.
