Common Questions for Central Air Conditioner

1. I have an air conditioning question?

it may not be the AC.

A lot of energy is lost through the attic, windows, door jams, poor insulation etc. Of course, check your filters and see if the coil isnt dusty, but it being so hot outside, a lot of radiant head is trying to creep in at those ponts

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2. My central Air Conditioner Unit is making a WEIRD sound!

?

your blower wheel needs to be oiled. on a singer it is fairly easy to take out and oil.

i believe there is only one bolt and one wiring harness to disconnect in you furnace. email me if you have questions

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3. Where can you buy a kit to charge your central air conditioner.

Mine keeps freezing up so I am pretty sure I n

If you try to do this yourself you will probably end up destroying the compressor. Freeze back is most likely caused by dirty air filter and/or dirty coils inthe ductwork. check that first before you destroy the unit by attempting something you know nothing about.

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4. My central air conditioner keeps filling up the drip pan and tripping the shut up valve.

the conensation line is stopped up.

do you have a cond.pump or just a cond.drain line?

ckeck where the water is exiting the pan, you'll probably find it there,or if you habe a pump its either stopped up or gone out

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5. New central air conditioner stopped blowing cold air, help?

The thing is a year old.

Don't touch it. It better still be under warranty or you got screwed. Call the outfit that put it in and scream at them about it.

Sorry,. if you called me out I wouldn't touch it.

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6.

My home central air conditioner turns it self on while the montier is on a off mode.

Your question is not clear. Your central air comes on when the thermostat is in the off mode?

If so there is a short in the control wiring somewhere. Edit: Ralph may be right if it's just the indoor fan coming on and not the a/c unit

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7. Troubleshooting central air conditioner?

Have you checked your attic to see if anything got moved onto the ducts? Maybe someone was up there and has "pinched" one of the ducts by moving something heavy against it or on top of it. I would also just check the ducts in general up there for anything obvious

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8.

air conditioner (central heat and air) not throwing off a lot of cold air what to do?

Uh oh . last time that happened to me, it ended up involving 6 HVAC techs, 4 service trucks, and a $600 bill.

If you haven't had your system serviced lately (within the past year or so), you're overdue for a service call, anyway.

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9. If my central air conditioner is running in my home, but it is not cooling my house, should I turn it off?

Chances are your unit could have been fixed cheaply a loooong time ago. By continuing to try to run it, there's a good chance additional damage has been done. btw: air conditioners don't run on "coolent".

They use refrigerant.

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10. air conditioner question central heat and air?

It's better to leave it on one set temperature than to set it up during the day. It will have to work harder to get up to temp. Unless you are going away for a few days then you could set it up.

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11. Has anyone purchased a portable air conditioner, if so, do u like it? which one do u recommend?

A portable air conditioner must have the body or butt of the machine outside. If the machine is entirely inside the front of the machine will blow cool air while the rear puts out heat so you would be no farther ahead

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12. Why does my Air Conditioner smell like fish?

if it's a central unit, change air filter, and have e-coil cleaned,also ducting maybe need to be replaced, if it has moldy smell, when a/c turns on. if,it is a window unit, clean filter, and e-coil

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13. Power Bill: Which costs more to run/use for 30 days?

The answers above seem about right. If you really want to save some money push that thermostat up to 75 or so. You and your roomate will get used to it in a few days.

You could even spring for another fan to keep the air moving since they use very little electricity.

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14. Central air/ furnace one unit?

i think there is for heat also. but some units for mobile homes have ac/blower in the unit outside. ive seen people get these cheap and use as window units.

just run a big pipe into the window from the unit. newer stuff is more like the typical furnace inside

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15. how does an air conditioner?

Huh? You meant, how does air conditioner works? There are a lot site explain it.

Here is link for technical question: http://www.central-air-conditioner-and-refrigeration.com/central_air_conditioning_unit.

html What is your real question? There are a lot helpful people out here.

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16.

Can the aluminum fins of a outdoor central air conditioner be replaced?

Afraid not, the fins are welded to the coils where the refrigerent circulates. It should not be a problem the fins are there to help dissapate the heat in the refrigerent.

As long you clean them with a little soapy water and hose them down once every 6 months your unit will work fine.

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17. Central air conditioner water drain noise?

be glad that it is doing that,if it wasn't you would really have something to ask,but yes you can redirect the condensation line so it will be away from that area or install a condensation pump and run it on the other side of the attic

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18. What would cause a central air conditioner to freeze up?

Okay, here's the list of possibilities: 1) Failed blower (no air over the coil doesn't transfer heat from air) 2) Failed thermal expansion valve 3) Low refrigerant charge (or leak) 4) Dirty air filter 5) Bypass of a portion of the coil (see number 1)

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19.

Air Conditioner turns off before temperature is reached?

Check that you do not have a float switch wired across the red wire at your unit. If you do not have an external drain pan (safety pan), or an inline switch on the drain line, then this is not the issue and you are randomly losing power to the stat

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20.

How to Move a central air conditioner from one side of the house to the other.

This could be a disaster if done wrong. Remember, you have the wiring that comes from the AC to the internal monitoring system in the house.

Depending on how the installers wired your house, the wiring is in the wall. This job might require a professional unless you are familiar with drywalling and electrical work.

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21.

When the air conditioner runs, water leaks on the floor?

All air conditioners produce water due to condensation. Most drain out the back and if your air conditioner is perfectly level it find it's way out.

Make sure it is tilted back just a little to allow it to drain properly.

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22. Does a landlord have to provide some sort of air conditioning?

If the central air is in your lease agreement, then yes, she absolutely has to provide you with air. If not, then she does not. Hopefully you kept any paper that said the unit had air conditioning.

Even an advertisement would probably hold up in court.

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23. My central air conditioner seems to cycle on and off a lot.

that means that the controller for the air conditioner is set to too small of a range. for example it turns on at 76 degrees and turns off at 75 degrees. on a properly set air conditioner it should be set to turn on at 78 and turn off at 74, or some range like that

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24.

Why a central air conditioner is installed outside a house and not in basement?

It's counter productive. The basement heats up from the condenser coils and that heat can find its way into the living areas.

The coil can raise the temperature above 80-90 deg F. Plus the noise is another big factor

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25. Central air conditioner compressor (which is only a few years old) trips circuit on Very hot days?

Check the filters (not just the ones on the A/C system, but the ones that go to the outside). Sounds like hot air is backing into the system which will trip off a circuit. Something has to be wrong with the intake and out take of the air.

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26. why does my central air conditioner freeze up and stop working?

If your AC is set too low, like 60 degrees, the unit will freeze and stop working until it unfreezes, and after it thaws, it will work again.

Check the settings on it to make sure this is not happening. I know it sounds stupid, but it can happen.

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27.

What is the average cost for replacing an air conditioner?

That seems to be the most popular question going when we enter someones house to diagnose their a/c problem. Let me just say, its more expensive than a new computer system or a new wide screen tv.

But not a whole lot more

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28. My central air conditioner isn't working correctly.

You need to have an A/C tech check it for you.

Low on freon, Dirty air filter Clogged line filter.Condencer fan not turning up to speed.Clogged condencer coils.

Compressor could be overheating.Thermal overload inside compressor opening and protecting the compressor.

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29.

Can I run a central air conditioner when it rains?

Please tell them to use the A/C. Then try to find out what the so called "technical" reasons were for not using it.

I'll bet that they misunderstood something the installer said. If not, please let the rest of us know what crazy information was told them.

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30.

why does the fan motor on a central air unit keep running when the air conditioning shuts off?

its much more efficient that way, it just blasts that last bit of cool air into your house instead of wasting it in the ventilation. same goes with central heat, if this didn't happen your thermostat(s) would trip much sooner causing it to run much more often

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31.

how to trouble shoot an air conditioner?

Low air pressure could be caused by a dirty air filter that is restricting air flow. It could also be caused by a restriction in the ductwork, crushed duct, or a disconnected duct.

Or the blower motor could be bad

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32. which way does the air flow on the inside intake of a central air conditioner?

Left to right, unless you are on the opposite side, then it is right to left.

Or, turn on the fan and hold a piece of paper in the cabinet. The paper will be drawn towards the return side and away from the supply side.

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33.

what uses less engery to us central air or air condition unit?

a room air conditioner cools a smaller area so would use less energy that a central air unit. A small room unit can use the existing electrical wiring so that is a savings.

but then come the variables, so see the link

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34. Central air conditioner is leaking water?

Are you sure that the collection pan/drain pan is level?

Is the water clear and not full of dust etc? A little bleach will keep it clear. I had a bad experience with an unlevel pan.

Ceiling fell in.

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35. the air conditioner smells like skunk.

what can i do to keep my pets safe from the fumes until it gets fixed?

Skunks do no longer hassle me yet i do no longer choose to be around them. Bankers tend to in comparison to me lots and don;t choose me around.

attorneys seem to be the lesser of three evils to me. i'm hoping one among my sons will become one

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36. Can you get central air when you have baseboard hot water for heat?

You can do hot air with a hot water boiler, you would need to install duct work throughout the house. A hot water blower to circulate air throughout the duct work. and assuming you want A/C, a condensing unit.

It could be a significant investment.

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37. is it cheaper to run a fan (regular portable one) or central air?

The fan is circulating the air whereas the air conditioner can actually cool it and draw moisture from the air simultaneously. The fan would be less expensive as far as the hydro is concerned but what will the cost be in terms of your comfort?

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38.

Is our central air conditioner working properly?

check to make sure you have the cool setting on and auto for the fan setting. Is cold air coming out of the registers?

Set the thermostat a little lower and see what happens.also try a little higher after checking you settings. .

good luck and stay cool. .summer has just begun!

.

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39. My central air conditioner won't come on ?

Check and see if the pipe is clogged. (The pipe that allows the condensation to drip from the pan and then, ultimately, outside.) Sometimes, if you spray a water house directly into the outside portion of the pipe, it will unclog itself and then allow the condensation to drain properly

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40.

how the i fix the fan on my central Air conditioner?

Check for a oil plug on the motor. Will be a small and on the side of motor.

This does consist of removing the fan housing. If it has one, Use a small amount of 10W30 motor oil on it.

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41.

Air Conditioner problem. please help!?

make sure your thermostat is set on cool. if that doesn't work then since the outside fan isn't running i would say its time to call a repair person as there is something wrong with the outside unit

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42. My central air (inside home) is making a vibrating sound that can be hear throughout house?

what is the cause?

It would be vibration from the compressor .its difficult to say exactly why.

possibly a mount or the compressor itself. If its something you are just hearing .it may be caused by the compressor but is incidental to it like a loose panel or duct work

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43.

Why does my central air conditioner have ice on the pipes?

If there is a lot of humidity it could condense on the pipes (much like a toilet tank) and then freeze (since the pipe are very cold). It's happened to my AC before, no big deal.

Just turn it off for an hour or two and that'll all be gone.