Living at ease in the summer can be taken for granted, mainly until you feel a taste of anxiety with an air conditioner failure. It can occur at the worst moments; you’re eating lunch and suddenly recognize how warm your kitchen feels or you can’t fall asleep at night because you are so hot wrapped in your covers. Think you’re feeling this discomfort? It might be time for an air conditioner replacement.
Often times, it isn’t the thermostat’s error; the settings can be running properly, but it still reads that the temperature is above 80 degrees. It’s usually caused by an old or faulty air conditioner that needs a call to the experts to find out what’s wrong. There are many reasons why air conditioners stop working, especially considering the weather in Des Moines. Here are a couple of things that you can examine for before you call Heartland Heating & Cooling if you think your air conditioner has quit working:
- Broken outdoor fan motor: There is a fan motor on your outdoor air conditioning system that helps transport the heat from your home to the outdoors. If you examine your system and discover that the fan isn’t running, it means that the heat relocation isn’t transpiring, causing the warm air to remain in your home. This malfunction can also trigger overheating of the compressor and other potential internal destruction to your system.
- Dirty filters: It’s one of the most likely issues that Heartland Heating & Cooling sees. These unclean filters in your air conditioner reduce proper airflow, affecting the air quality in your home, which is really tricky when allergy season strikes. Dirty air filters can also reduce the efficiency in your home and increase your monthly energy costs.
- Blocked air flow: Always check for an obstacle or obstruction in your return-air or supply-air grille. This can cause your air conditioner to decrease efficiency and slow down.
TIP: Make sure the grilles aren’t concealed by furniture or other home items, also. - Outside obstructions: Correct air flow could be also hindered from outside blockages around your system, such as shrubbery, trees, lawn chairs, etc. When the air flow is deterred, it can influence it’s cooling capabilities. Make sure that your system is free from obstacles and is cleaned routinely to lower the chance of air conditioner replacement.
Once you’ve gone through these four system checks and your air conditioner still isn’t working, here are a list of questions and additional checks that you should check and answer to get your system up and running again. (Only progress to the next question if the system doesn’t start after doing the step before it):
- Is your thermostat temperature programmed below the indoor temperature?
- Is your system switch in the COOL spot?
- Is the outdoor unit power supply switch ON?
- Is the furnace/air handler power supply ON?
- Is your house fuse box/breaker box ok or has it blown a fuse or tripped a circuit breaker?
- If none of these things change your system operation, call Heartland Heating & Cooling at 515-344-3579.
Don’t let an air conditioner failure or replacement keep you up at night. If you follow these procedures and keep your system under annual maintenance, you should have you air conditioner operating again in no time. Our team at Heartland Heating & Cooling in Des Moines is always here to assist – give us a call at 515-344-3579.