When it’s scorching outside, you depend on your air conditioner to keep things balmy inside. But is your air conditioner taking forever to cool down the house? This is typical on sweltering days, which squeeze your air conditioner harder than usual. However, if it’s not especially hot outside and your air conditioner is still struggling, your cooling equipment might have a problem. Use these tips to help you troubleshoot the matter.
Dirty Air Filter
A clogged filter is the most frequent reason an AC system takes too long to lower the temperature of the house. The job of a filter is to trap airborne particles that might harm delicate HVAC equipment. More efficient filters even capture tiny airborne contaminants to improve indoor air quality.
Eventually, the filter becomes stuffed with dust, pet hair, and textile fibers, reducing circulation. Besides making the AC unit take longer to cool down the house, this issue can also lead to higher energy bills, higher wear and tear, and overheating.
Solution: Check your air filter once a month and change it if it looks dirty. Don't wait more than three months to exchange the filter or follow the manufacturer’s recommendations. If you’re not sure where the air filter can be found, check with an HVAC technician at your next service appointment.
Improper Thermostat Settings
Your thermostat must be compatible with your cooling to work properly. Then, you must set it correctly to reach a cozy temperature. Employing a programmable or Wi-Fi thermostat produces the best results.
Solution: If you want to update your thermostat, require help learning about programmable settings, or may not feel comfortable programming a thermostat by yourself, call an HVAC technician at Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning for help.
Dirty Evaporator Coil
Split-system air conditioners possess an indoor unit and an outdoor unit. The indoor unit includes the evaporator coil, which soaks up heat from the air using refrigerant. It’s challenging for the refrigerant to hold onto heat properly if the evaporator coil is dirty, making it take longer to lower the temperature of your house.
Solution: Call our HVAC professionals to clean and tune up your air conditioner. An important part of this call involves cleaning out dust and grime from the evaporator coil to improve cooling performance.
Dirty or Obstructed Outdoor Unit
Your AC system's cooling cycle requires moving warm refrigerant to the outdoor unit, where it expels heat away from your home. However, if the outdoor unit is dirty or surrounded by encroaching vegetation, the cooling cycle might be less successful.
Solution: Lightly clean the outdoor unit to get rid of dust, cobwebs, pine needles and grass clippings. Then, prune back bushes to a minimum of 12 inches from the unit to enhance ventilation.
Refrigerant Leak
Refrigerant is vital to a cool home. Usually, this substance moves in a closed loop among the indoor and outdoor units. If a leak develops and your cooling loses refrigerant, it becomes more difficult to handle the cycle of absorbing and expelling heat from your home.
Solution: Only a qualified technician can fix refrigerant leaks and recharge the system. If you suspect this problem, call our HVAC professionals for help at once.
Leaky Ductwork
Air ducts are the arteries and veins of your HVAC system. A leak from either the return or supply side can make your air conditioner perform harder and longer to keep your home cool.
Solution: If you experience irregular temperatures and high amounts of dust throughout the house, get ahold of Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning to inspect your ventilation. Duct sealing or replacement can fix the problem.
Dirty or Blocked Air Vents
Conditioned air can only flow through your home when the supply and return vents are open and unobstructed. Shutting too many vents can even mess with the system’s balance, resulting in increased breakdowns and repair costs.
Solution: Check the vents in each room, ensuring they’re open and not blocked by furniture, carpets or curtains.
Old or Inadequately Sized Air Conditioner
Did you install your air conditioner more than 10 to 15 years ago? As it ages, the AC becomes less effective and can fail to maintain comfortable temperatures. Additionally, have you recently built a home addition or made other improvements? This could leave you with an undersized air conditioner that may be unable to keep up with demand.
Solution: The only solution for an outdated or undersized air conditioner is to exchange it. Depend on our qualified HVAC technicians to size and install your new unit for comfort and efficiency.
Schedule AC Repair with Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning
If your troubleshooting efforts prove ineffective, feel free to contact the HVAC professionals at Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning. We supply fast, effective services to get your AC back up and running right away. You can count on the fact that our technicians follow the highest standards of customer service to ensure your long-term peace of mind. Contact us to schedule air conditioning repair or any other HVAC services today.