Central Air Conditioner Troubleshooting & Repairs HomeTips

A central air conditioning compressor, located outdoors, should be cleaned before every cooling season.

Save energy and money while making your home more comfortable with these DIY air conditioner repair techniques.

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In brief:

If your A/C doesnt work at all, be sure its receiving power at the electrical panel, then check the thermostat settings. If the air conditioner runs but doesnt cool well: 1. Turn off the power, 2. Clean or change the filter, 3. Look to see if ice has formed on the coils and, if it has, turn the power and the fan on, 4. Clean the condensate drain, 5. Check and clean the outdoor compressor.

In depth:

By keeping your AC unit working well, you can save energy and, as a result, money. If a central air conditioner is in ill repair, it probably wont work when you need it most.

In addition, if your central AC works but doesnt cool well, youre bound to use far more energy than necessary to keep your house cool.

Several different kinds of problems can occur with a central air-conditioning system.

For example, you may find your central AC :

Doesnt work at all
Runs but does a poor job of cooling
Allows dramatic changes in room temperature
Drips or leaks water
Makes strange noises

Although some central air conditioner repairs must be handled by a qualified air-conditioning repair person, in this article well look at how you can handle simple repairs and maintenance yourself.

In addition, these two articles may be very helpful for the general care and maintenance of your air conditioner: Preparing Your Air Conditioner for Summer and How to Replace Furnace & AC Filters. The latter is a job that should be handled at least twice a year, before the heating and cooling seasons.

Central Air Conditioner Doesnt Work At All

If your central air conditioner doesnt go on automatically when the thermostat signals the need for cooling, its quite likely that the thermostat isnt working properly or the unit is receiving electrical power. Before you do anything else, be sure the thermostat is set to COOL and its temperature setting is well below the ambient temperature.
Then do the following:

1Check the main electrical panel and any secondary circuit panels for a tripped breaker or blown fuse. If you find the problem there, reset the breaker by turning it off and then on or replace the fuse. A central air conditioner should be on a dedicated 240-volt circuit.

2Make sure the furnace power switch is turned on and that the outdoor condensers power switch, which is mounted on the outdoor unit, hasnt been shut off. Also be sure the 240-volt disconnect next to the compressor, which is in a metal box usually mounted on the house wall, hasnt been shut off.

With this type of electronic thermostat, you pull off the body to access the baseplate and wires.

3Turn off the power to the air conditioner and check the thermostat. Remove the thermostats cover from the base (usually by pulling straight out) and replace the batteries (if it has batteries). Replace the cover and wait 3 or 4 minutes and try the system again.

4If that doesnt do the job, open the thermostat again and unscrew the wire from the Y terminal. Turn the power back on. Holding the wire by its insulation only, touch the bare end to the R terminal and hold it there for about two minutes. If the compressor kicks on, the thermostat is faulty; replace it as discussed in the article How to Install an Electronic Thermostat. If the compressor doesnt go on when you hold the two wires together, turn the power back off and call an air-conditioning technician.

Still not working? Please keep reading.

Air Conditioner Doesnt Cool Well

If you can hear your central air conditioner running, but it doesnt cool well, the problem can be caused by a couple of issues. The very first thing to do is make sure the filter in the air handler is clean so that it receives proper air flow.

1Turn off the power to the air conditioning unit.

2Remove the door on the front of the air-handler cabinet to give you access to the filter. Pull out the filter and clean or replace it as necessary.

3Look for ice. If you see ice in the area around the coils, close the unit back up, turn the power back on, and turn on the fan. The ice should melt within an hour or two.

4Clear the condensate drain. Air conditioners can create a lot of water because they remove moisture from the air. To get rid of this, they have a [usually plastic] drain pipe that comes out of the side of the air handler. Over time, algae can block this pipe and, when it does, the A/C wont work. Water is also likely to puddle around the unit or even flood the area. To deal with condensate problems, please see Air Conditioner Leaks Water, below.

5Clean the outdoor compressor. For complete instructions, please see Air Conditioner Doesnt Cool Well.

6Make sure the compressor is working. When you set the thermostat to a temperature below the room temperature, you should hear the outdoor compressor run and see the fan turning inside the top. If the fan isnt turning, look for an overload button or switch to reset (not all types have this). Stick a screwdriver down through the top grille and try to spin the fan blades clockwise. They should spin freely. If doing this gives the fan enough of a boost to get going, the unit has a faulty capacitor that must be replaced by an AC repair technician.

If none of these steps worked, the chances are pretty good that the coolant needs to be recharged by an air conditioning professional.

If your room has dramatic swings in temperature before the system kicks on, see Room Temperature Too Hot, Then Too Cold.

Air Conditioner Doesnt Blow Air

If your air handlers motor runs but the blower doesnt move air, the belt that connects the two probably has broken. Replacing it is an easy fix if you have a few tools and do-it-yourself skills.
Heres how to replace the air conditioners blower belt:

1Turn off all power to the unit and, if the air handler is a gas furnace, turn off the gas at the gas valve that serves the furnace.

2Remove the door on the front of the air-handler cabinet to give you access to the blower (it might be on a slide-out drawer.) Check the number stamped on the belt and get an exact replacement from a home center or heating supply outlet.

First, fit the belt onto the motor pulley.

3You can usually slip the belt on the motors (smaller) pulley first and then start it on the blower pulley, as shown at right. Rotate the blower pulley by hand, holding the belt in place but keeping your fingers from getting caught between the belt and the pulley. The belt should slip right into place. If it seems to be too tight or difficult to set in place, it may be necessary to adjust the motor mount to provide more slack. Then you can re-tighten the tension once the belt is in place. Check the manufacturers specifications for proper tensionin most cases, the belt should deflect about an inch when you press down on it.

4Lubricate. Finally, some fan motors and fans need oiling; some have sealed bearings. If recommended by your maintenance manual, oil the bearings according to the manufacturers directions.

Air Conditioner Leaks Water

Air conditioners and high-efficiency combustion furnaces create significant condensationwere talking about a lot of water, especially in humid climatesseveral gallons per day. This water exits the air handler through plastic pipe or a drain tube. That drain tube goes directly outside, often terminating near the compressor, or to a floor drain or to a small electric condensate pump located by the air handler. Where a condensate pump is used, it connects to a 1/2-inch vinyl or rubber tube that exits outdoors or to a drain.

If water is dripping or pooling at the base of the air handler, it may be leaking from one of the plastic pipes or tubes that carry it, something may be blocking the waters flow, or the condensate pump may not be working. If the pump stops working, it will overflow.

Float switch is designed to shut off the A/C unit if the drain becomes clogged.

On some air handlers, the condensation drain pipe has a small safety float switch (see photo) connected to it. If the drain pipe backs up with water, the float switch will shut off the air conditioner. This is a sure sign that its time to clear the condensation drain pipe.

1 If your system includes an electric condensate pump, make sure it is connected to a working electrical outlet. Then look to see if the tubing that carries away the water has come loose from the pump. If it has, reconnect it. More likely is the possibility that the tube or the pump is clogged with algae. If this is the case, use a wet-dry vacuum  to suck all of the water out of the tube. In some cases, it might be easier to replace it with new 1/2-inch tubing purchased online, at an HVAC supply shop, or at a well-stocked home improvement center.

The condensate pump, next to the air handler or furnace, is easy to replace. A new one costs about $50.

2 Test the pump by pouring water into its collector. The pump, which is turned on by a ball float inside that rises with the water level, should start. If it doesnt, it is stuck or broken. If its stuck, you should be able to disconnect it from the power and from the inbound tubes, disassemble the top, and clean it out thoroughly. If its quite old or broken, youre probably better off replacing the pump so you dont have to do this again in the near future.

To kill algae, pour a dilute solution of bleach (1 part bleach to 16 parts water) into the pumps trough and pump it out through the tube. Dont do this on you lawnit will kill the grass.

3 If the pump runs but doesnt empty the trough, the ball-like check valve just before the discharge tube is probably stuck. Unscrew the check valve, loosen the ball inside, and look for an obstruction and a build-up of algae. If it appears that a condensation drain tube is clogged with algae, remove it if possible (you may have to cut it and replace it later with a coupling). Blow it out or run a wire through it to clear itor, better still, replace it with new tubing.

4 Ice may be blocking the tube. If this is the case, clean or change your AC filters. If the filters appear to be fine, the air conditioners refrigerant supply is probably low. Call an air-conditioning technician to have the unit recharged.

For more about filters, see How to Replace Furnace & AC Filters.

Air Conditioner Makes Noise

Though most air handlers have direct-drive motors, some older units may be belt-driven. Squealing sounds from a belt-drive air handler generally occur when the belt that connects the motor to the blower slips.

In most cases, the belt is improperly aligned or worn and needs replacement. Follow the instructions above under Air Conditioner Doesnt Blow Air (above) and refer to your owners manual.

If a direct-drive blower is squealing or making a grinding noise, shut off the unit and call an HVAC repair technicianthe motors bearings are probably shot.

Many heating/cooling ducts are metal so they conduct noise quite readily from the air-handling unit to your rooms. To break the conduction of sound, you can have a heating contractor insert flexible insulation ductwork between the heating/cooling system and the metal ductwork.

Hire a pro for complex repairs. Here, an HVAC professional checks the refrigerant levels in an air conditioning system. Get a pro now.

If you hear a pinging or popping sound coming from metal ductwork, this may be caused by thermal expansion or by air blowing past a loose flap of metal. Track along the duct runs, listening for the sound. If you find it, make a small dent in the sheet metal to provide a more rigid surface thats less likely to move as it heats and cools.

If the furnace makes rattling noises when it runs, be sure the cover panels are screwed on tight. If they arent, tighten them.

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Central Air Conditioner Troubleshooting & Repairs was last modified: May 6th, 2016 by Don Vandervort, HomeTips © 1997-2016

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