Having your air conditioner go out can be a real hassle, especially in the summer months. As temperatures rise, it can be unnerving to have your A/C unit slow down or stop, leaving you and your family in the uncomfortable heat or having to relocate. While scheduling an appointment with a professional A/C technician should always be one of your top options, there are also a few solutions you can try in the meantime. Occasionally, even getting your air conditioning back up and running is something you can do on your own. Here are a few easy solutions that you can try out on your A/C unit if it is not working properly.

Check Your Thermostat Settings

While some of these solutions might seem obvious, you would be surprised how often people pay for a technician to come out to their property for a simple switch flip or change of settings. If your thermostat is not in cool mode or even on, then your A/C unit will not be blowing cold air. It is also possible you need to change the batteries in your A/C thermostat.

Change Your Air Filters

It is recommended that you change your air filters every month. However, this is one of those pesky tasks that can be really easy to forget about altogether. If your air filter has not been changed in a while, it is possible that the accumulation of dirt and dust particles can cause it to clog up. This can cause your A/C system to shut down, or at the very least, not work as effectively as you would like. A symptom of this would be having your unit on and running, but it might not be blowing cold or any air.

If this is the case, check if your filters are dirty. If so, change them out and turn off the A/C while keeping the fan turned on. Dirty filters can cause the coils in your system to ice over. Turning off the A/C but keeping the fan on to run room temperature air can defrost this ice. Keep the fan on for at least two hours, then turn the fan to auto and turn your A/C back on.

Find Your Breaker Switch

It is sometimes possible that whatever switch your air conditioning unit is attached to has flipped. There could be many reasons for this, but fixing it is a very simple solution. Hopefully, your switches are labeled on your breaker box (this might be in your garage, in a closet, or even on an outer wall of your house). Simply flip the switch all the way off and then all the way on again.

If the breaker was the problem, doing this once should fix it. If the break trips again shut the system off and call an HVAC technician as soon as possible. Your breaker tripping could be a sign of serious problems, such as the burnt wiring pictured below. Issues like this can lead to a house fire if ignored.

Check The Shut Off Switch

Your San Marcos air conditioning unit might have an “on switch.” This is very common with gas furnace units. In these types of units, the furnace moves the air in the cooling mode as well as in heating. If it does have an “on switch,” it is possible that your unit simply got turned off. This switch will look very similar to a regular light switch that was installed on a wall (probably near your furnace). If you aren’t sure which switch goes to your A/C unit, a professional can help you locate it.

Empty Your Drain Pan

Your air conditioning will have a pan located somewhere at the bottom or underneath your indoor unit. This catches any leftover condensation that might not have drained out of your primary or secondary drain pipe. In systems with a float switch, when the drain pan is full your air conditioning unit may switch off in order to avoid any kind of spilling or flooding. If this is the case, simply empty the drain pan and turn the system back on.

San Marcos Air Conditioning Repair

It is possible that these do-it-yourself solutions might not solve your air conditioning issues, and you might still need to schedule a professional HVAC technician to look at it. If you test any solutions yourself, be sure to tell your technician what steps you took. Already tried these solutions and still having problems? Call AirOne Heating and Air Conditioning repair in San Marcos today to set up an appointment.