Is Your AC Unit Ready For Hot Weather?
One can often find a lot of wisdom in old sayings. For example, when something goes wrong someone might say that things smell fishy. Someone might say that things seem quiet, too quiet. Or there’s a saying that someone who can’t stand the heat should get out of the kitchen. It might not seem like it at first. But all of this wisdom also relates to climate control. Because all of it can relate to warning signs that one’s AC isn’t healthy enough to cope with the warm weather of summer. All of this brings up the important question of whether or not one’s air conditioner is really up to the stress of summer weather.
To begin, one can think back to the saying about something smelling fishy. Most people know what it feels like when walking into a room which just feels slightly off. If that’s happening in one’s home it’s a good idea to stop for a moment and consider something. Is the smell coming from around the area of the AC? Or is it coming from inside the unit itself? If a smell is wafting from the AC unit than one should investigate further.
If there’s no obvious source of the odour than it’s a good idea to take a moment to get a feel for the air around the unit. The air should feel unremarkable in terms of moisture. If it feels like the humidity levels are abnormally high then it’s a sign of something going wrong. An AC unit should create slightly lower levels of humidity around itself. If it’s the opposite than this can indicate something wrong with the unit’s ability to regulate humidity.
There’s also a related issue dealing with both smell and moisture. Moisture in the air can also come from pooling fluid underneath the AC unit. If the cooling system isn’t working properly then one might find soaked carpeting under it. This can be one of two things. It might be actual refrigerant or water. The water will usually be condensation from the coolant circulating within the system. While some condensation is normal, leakage into the home isn’t.
Anything involving liquid is especially concerning. The worst-case scenario of a coolant leak is also the least probable. But any of these should prompt one to immediately call for repairs. It’s also important to do so sooner rather than later. Home AC repair calls tend to ramp up as summer approaches. This is because people tend to turn failing units on for the first time as the warmest months approach. And when they call for Home AC repair the overall wait time will usually increase. As such one should try to check the AC unit as soon as possible.
However, there are some earlier but more subtle signs of trouble which can help one get calls in even faster. One of the earlier pearls of wisdom involved staying out of the kitchen if one can’t take the heat. When getting out of the proverbial kitchen one should head directly to the AC unit. It’s true that kitchen heat can be hard to deal with. But it shouldn’t be enough to overwhelm an AC unit. If the air conditioner can’t properly scale to match the heat of the kitchen than it could indicate something going wrong.
A common issue is just airflow. One should check the vents to see if there’s any blockage. It might simply be that one needs to clean out debris such as pet fur. But it might also be that the internal fan is damaged. This too would necessitate a call for repair.
