Central Air Conditioning Troubleshooting 101
Your air conditioning unit is such a wonderful thing when it is working well and such a nightmare when it is not. Most consumers have the tendency to place their faith in the household appliances they buy; consumers think and believe firmly that they will never ever break down. When it happens, you suddenly become unsure of what to do so you just call and ask for the service of a repairman at $80 to $85 an hour! Well, the next time it happens, don’t do the same thing. Remember, your air conditioning unit is driven by electricity. Therefore, it is repairable! Now, if your air conditioning unit is just giving you hot air, then the problem must be with the coil. Some, or probably all, of the Freon in your air conditioning unit has leaked out and in this case, you need to get licensed help. However, if the system does not run at all, you may need to know the central air conditioning troubleshooting steps to determine if you really need licensed help.
The first step to central air conditioning troubleshooting is to make sure that you or anyone else did not trip the breaker.
The second step is to check the breaker located next to the air conditioning unit outside. The breaker has fuses in it and each fuse costs around $2 to $3 each. If the breaker outside has been tripped, then you may need to replace the 2 fuses inside the box. If this works, then you just saved yourself a service call worth $85. However, if it does not, try central air conditioning troubleshooting number three.
The third step is to check the capacitor inside the air conditioning unit outside. Normally, the capacitor gets charged while the air conditioning unit is running and it quits when the temperature inside the house has already reached its final mark. The unit rests for a while and then starts up again. When the air conditioning unit starts up, the capacitor jump starts the fan motor to 220 and switches it to 120 after the start up. If the unit is on, the breaker inside it and the fuses outside are working fine but the fan is not, then get a plastic straw, stick it into the blades of the fan, and nudge it a little bit forward. If the problem is in the capacitor, the fan will start picking up speed and it will start running and cooling the house till it shuts to rest again.
However, if the capacitor does not work, do not try charging it yourself as it is dangerous for you if you accidentally touch the posts. When you reach this point and none of your central air conditioning troubleshooting steps work, you need to call your repairman and tell him all that you have done for your air conditioning unit. Unfortunately, you also have to blindly pay him $85. Anyway, your air conditioning unit matters to you! You have tried central air conditioning troubleshooting steps – you have done your part; now, it is time to make the licensed one do his.