Follow Author Like any electrical appliance or electronic gadget, air conditioners also need a little care and maintenance to keep delivering the best performance. Air conditioning systems have to go through a lot of wear and tear during hot weather, due to which they need to be kept in top notch condition for optimal cooling. To make sure that your system does not loose cooling when you need it the most, we have identified a few common things that you must check before calling a professional air conditioning repair expert. These are some of the problems that you can troubleshoot on your own. Let’s have a look:
Dirty Filter:
Whether you have a window AC, central AC or split AC, if its filter is clogged, its flow of air will be restricted, as a result of which its efficiency will be decreased and its ability to cool down the air will be significantly reduced. If it’s been a long time you have not cleaned your filter then make sure that you do that at frequent intervals of time. Some AC systems also come with instructions related to changing the filter and replacing it with a new one. Remember, if your AC system keeps running constantly, or if you have pets in your house, then you will need to clean and replace your filters more frequently. According to air conditioning repair experts, 90% of the times, the reason for low cooling is dirty filter.
Too Much Sunlight:
If the place where your AC is installed gets too much of direct sunlight during the day, then it will need to work much harder to cool down the interiors of your room. If possible, install the AC at a shadier place. But if that’s not possible, try to keep your curtains and shades down during the day, so that sunlight is blocked out and your room does not heat up excessively. If this does not happen, it will become harder for your AC to cool down your house. But if your AC is installed in a shady location already, then an air conditioning repair expert will be able to identify the problem that is interfering with its cooling mechanism and fix it accordingly.
Leaking Warm Air:
In case of a window AC, check the seals around it to make sure that hot air from the outside is not entering inside and cold air from your room is not seeping out. Use weather-stripping to reseal around your AC if needed. Most the new air conditioners have insulation panels in their package which can be placed over the side panels to seal the area around the unit. But its efficiency can be maximised by using weather-stripping. Do not forget to follow the manufacturer’s safety and installation guidelines before calling an air conditioning repair professional.
Vibrations:
Air conditioning units make a lot of noise due to whirring fan and compressor cycling. But if you notice that it is vibrating much more than normal, then it indicates that there is some problem with your AC installation. The AC unit needs to sit securely in its place. During the installation process, the instructions in the manual need to be followed religiously. Since you cannot uninstall the AC, fix the problem and reinstall it in place, you will need to call an air conditioning repair expert to do the job correctly.
Thermostat Setting:
Most air conditioning systems these days come with a programmable thermostat, with which you can easily control your room’s temperature as per your comfort level. If the temperature inside your room does not seem to be at par with the temperature you have set, then make sure that it is not exposed to sunlight, as this may cause the thermostat to register the wrong temperature.
Apart from regular cleaning and check-up, do not miss the annual inspection and servicing of your AC. If left unchecked, the problems may get worse and leave your house hot and uncomfortable. So, before you call an air conditioning repair professional, first check these things to be sure.
Published by Zoe Sewell
