It’s summer in the city, the mercury is in the nineties, the asphalt is melting on the roads and even with the air-conditioning in your car working full-blast, you feel more like a sweat-soaked rag than a human being by the time you get home from work. You finally reach the sanctuary of your own home, turn the AC to the max, sit back and wait for the waves of coolness to wash over you and.. nothing happens. Not exactly nothing, all the right lights are on on the ac unit, you can hear it humming as normal but the temperature remains the same. And then the awful truth hits you; your air conditioning is running but not cooling!
Even if you’ve never been there yourself, you can imagine that this is a situation you don’t want to be in.
Here are some of the reasons that this may happen so that hopefully you can avoid it altogether :
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Your Air Ducts Are Leaky
After the AC has cooled the air, it distributes it around your home through air ducts in your walls and ceilings. If these are leaking, the cool air is going into your walls, attic, and basement rather than where you need it, in your living space.
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Your Home Is Leaky
There might just be too much air getting into your home. Ill-fitting doors and windows, badly installed vents and electric outlets can all let the heat in, and if there’s too much getting in, your AC simply won’t be able to handle it.
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Your Vents Are Closed Or Blocked
Your HVAC system is designed to keep your entire home at the desired temperature as efficiently as possible. If you close or block off vents because you think they’re unnecessary, you’re negatively impacting on the efficiency of your unit.
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Your Air Filters Are Dirty
It seems that every AC manual you read and maintenance person you talk to can’t say enough about keeping your filters clean, doesn’t it? Well, if you’re sitting with your AC going full blast and sweat trickling down your leg into your shoe, now you know why.
Your AC works by drawing in air, cooling it, and distributing it around your home. If your filters aren’t clean, it just can’t get enough air to cool your home properly.
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Your Condenser (Outside) Unit Is Dirty
The heat that is absorbed by your AC is expelled through the outside unit. If this gets clogged up with dust, leaves, etc, the heat has nowhere to go and backs up in the system, raising your utility bills as well as the temperature in your home.
The refrigerant is the blood of your AC, and, like our blood, it usually doesn’t get used up, just goes round and round. So if you are low on refrigerant it means you’ve sprung a leak and need to get it fixed.
If you’ve just had an AC installed and it’s running all the time but not cooling, it’s probably too small for the area it has too cool and you should contact your dealer to get it replaced.
If you’ve recently increased your living space by adding an extension or blocking in a patio, you’ll need to upgrade your AC to handle the extra area.
We hope you find this information useful, and remember to contact us for all your AC troubleshooting needs.
