The sad truth of the matter is that many people don’t worry about their Air Conditioning system till it has stopped running. It is one of those simple things in life many of us take for granted till we realize we can’t survive the summer temperatures without it. As I currently work as an Air Conditioning Technician for a National Air Conditioning Repair Company based out Arizona. I see a wide range of problems from Air Conditioners. Some problems are pretty simple, and some are really complex. I feel that I could save you a few dollars if you ran into one of the simple issues I will talk about later on.
First thing to know about Air Conditioners is that they mainly come in 2 styles.
When you see the whole AC on top of a house in one “package” then that is called a Package System. If has a natural gas heater in a package system. Then some people call those a “Gas Pack” system.
The other style of AC is a “split” system. Those AC’s will usually have a condenser unit on the side of the house, and an Air Handler in the attic or an outside closet.
Air Conditioners will have a variety of heaters as they can be fitted for any kind of climate. They can have a wide range of heat sources depending on what is most readily available. Some of the most common heaters are electrical, natural gas, and heat pumps.
Most residential systems range in size from 1 to 5 tons.
Commercial systems can range in size depending on the application. Most of the larger buildings have built in chiller systems such as Hospitals, Malls, Data Centers.
If your AC stops running on a hot summer day then there could be a few things to check for. First thing is first and I always check the thermostat of the unit. Depending on the style of thermostat. Your thermostat batteries underneath the cover could be dead. If your thermostat batteries are fine or if it doesn’t have any. Then I would next check the circuit breaker panel. In the summer time some units will have a hard time getting rid of all the heat that is built up in the buildings. They tend to over amp during the hot days which will cause your circuit breaker to trip, or maybe one of the fuses may pop. One of the fastest and easiest ways to help remedy this situation is to first take a look at your Air Filter. If it is dirty then you should replace it with a similar style. If it is a reusable filter then you should clean it according to the style it is. Next thing that will help this situation is cleaning off your outside condenser coils. They tend to build up unwanted layers of dirt and grime over the years. The dirt helps insulate the heat within the condenser coils and prevents it from transferring out. The best way to prevent this is using a recommend coil cleaner like in the link below. Make sure you thoroughly wash off the coils with water to prevent them from chemical damage unless specifically stated on the bottle. Some chemicals will state that they are a “No-Rinse” formula.
Brooks $
Nu-Calgon 4171-75 Evap Foam No Rinse Evaporator Coil Cleaner, 18 oz.
A/C SAFE AC-921 Air Conditioner Coil Foam Cleaner, Cleans Evaporator and Condenser Coils and Fan BladesAir Conditioner Condenser Fin and Refrigerator Coil Cleaning Whisk BrushUEi Test Instruments PDT650 Folding Pocket Digital ThermometerEtekcity Lasergrip 774 Non-contact Digital Laser Infrared Thermometer Temperature Gun -58℉~ 716℉ (-50℃ ~ 380℃), Yellow and BlackHOLDPEAK 981C Non-Contact Digital Laser Infrared Thermometer Temperature Gun Instant-read -58 to 1022℉ (-50 to 550℃) with 9V Battery and Emissivity 0.1-1.0(Adjustable)
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