The AC turned on, but now it’s just not turning off. The temperature looks like it’s exactly where you want it, so what gives? Turns out your AC could have a problem receiving the signal that it’s time to power down, and there are only a couple of things you can do about it as a homeowner.
Make no mistake, this still ends with air conditioner repair in Little Rock, but in the meantime, you need to be able to power it down so it doesn’t drive up your energy bill and burn out the system. Before we talk about our two temporary fixes that you can do, there’s something important you should know: under no circumstances should you ever tamper with the wiring on the inside of your air conditioner. There are enormous safety concerns and a potentially fatal risk of electrocution.
Turn Off the Outdoor AC Switch
Outside, there’s a switch by your air conditioner that has a cover. When you open the cover, you can flick the switch to power down your AC.
However, it may not power it down. Pay attention to the AC cabinet itself, look for the fans to stop rotating, and listen for any sounds that it’s making to stop. If that doesn’t happen, you have to move on to the next step.
If it does stop, you need to go inside and double-check by putting your hand over a vent. There’s a chance that the blower motor is still on, and if so, you’ll feel the flow of air even if it’s not cool. That means you have to try the second option.
Power it Down at the Breaker
Inside your home, there’s a circuit breaker. It might be in the garage, the laundry room–it widely depends on the design of the house. It’s a metal box that’s embedded into the wall with a door on it.
Once you find it, open the door to find a lot of horizontal switches. Each one of these switches should have a label next to them. Find the one that says either “AC” or “Air Conditioner” and flip the switch. It may appear as two switches bridged together by a metal bracket. That’s okay; they’ll move as one when you flip the switch.
This should eliminate all power to your AC. If that’s not the case, it means the breaker switches were mislabeled, or there’s another problem altogether. This is when your HVAC technician comes in; you’ve done all that you can.
It Always Ends in Repair
It’s not a viable strategy to turn the breaker off and on when you want cool air. It’s terrible that this problem has happened, but it’s something that desperately needs the attention of an HVAC technician.
From the moment you realize this is a problem, call for repairs, then proceed to power down the AC through these two methods here. Remember our cautionary tale and do not interfere with any direct electrical wiring.
Contact Dewees HVAC today to schedule your AC repair as soon as possible.