Common Air Conditioner Problems that Could Hurt Your Unit this Summer

This summer, to avoid any annoying and troublesome days without air conditioning, be sure to keep a special eye on your unit during the season. Luckily, most air conditioner problems have happened before, and we’ve compiled a list of common air conditioner problems to look out for:

• Be sure you are operating your air conditioning unit properly. If the air is on, close all outside doors and windows. If it’s a room air conditioner, isolate the space from the rest of the home as much as possible.
• If the central unit’s compressor stops working on a particularly steamy day, the high-pressure limit switch may have been tripped. You can fix this by pushing the reset button located in the compressor’s access panel.
• If you have a refrigerant leak, you should not attempt to repair it yourself. You should bring in a trained technician to fix the leak and charge the system with the appropriate amount of refrigerant.
• Make sure you don’t allow your filters and air conditioning coils to become dirty. Proper upkeep saves you money in the long term, because if you don’t keep them clean, the compressors or fans will fail earlier than expected.
• Make sure electrical connections and contacts are properly checked during maintenance calls. Corrosion of terminals and wires are common and can lead to electric control failure.
• If your air conditioner cycles constantly or behaves erratically, you may have an issue with your thermostat sensor being knocked out of place. The sensor should be near to the coil but should not be touching it. You can adjust its position by carefully bending the wire holding it in place.
• Especially during the summer months, it is important to check your condensate drain to make sure it isn’t plugged and is draining properly. If room air conditioners have not been mounted at room level, they may not drain properly.

If you need help maintaining or repairing your air conditioning unit this summer or have more questions about common air conditioner problems, don’t hesitate to contact the professionals at Paschal Heat, Air & Geothermal.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Springdale, Arkansas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about common air conditioner problems and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

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