You might have a central air unit. If you do, you will likely use it during the hot summer months. If you live somewhere like the American West, South, or Southwest, you may run it year-round.
You may sometimes notice that you’re not getting the performance from your air conditioner that you’d like, though. For instance, maybe it starts blowing warm rather than cool air.
You should check your AC’s air filter every 60-90 days, and you should also hire an HVAC company that can service it once a year. That should help keep your AC running smoothly, but if you’re still getting warm air even when you do these things, you might wonder what’s causing it.
We’ll discuss that right now.
The Three Main Components
Your air conditioner has three main components. It has an evaporator, condenser, and compressor. These must all function properly.
If any of these three stop working, you might get warm air rather than cool air. If you hire someone from an HVAC company who can look over your unit, they may find that one of these three components needs repairs.
They might replace the faulty component. That will usually get your AC unit working correctly again.
Clogged Air Filters
Your AC unit also has air filters. They must remain unclogged. If something clogs your air filter, that can also produce warm air that you’ll notice circulating throughout the home.
If you have a clogged air filter, that will often cause an evaporator coil to freeze up. Then, you’re getting an inadequate heat exchange. The coil can’t absorb heat from the air if this happens, and that air remains hot.
Again, you’ll need an adjustment or possibly some new components. An HVAC company can do that for you as well.
You Set Your Thermostat Wrong
You must also set your thermostat correctly to get the results you want. In the hotter months, you want steady, cool air. You can’t get that if you set the thermostat to “heat” rather than “cool,” though.
You can fix this easily enough. You just make the adjustment to your thermostat. It only takes a moment, and you should have cool air again in no time.
Your Refrigerant Runs Low
You need refrigerant in the air conditioner. If you get an HVAC repair person, they may call it your AC unit’s lifeblood.
This substance absorbs heat. It does it well, and if you have enough, you should have no problems. You can enjoy the cool air you want for months on end.
If it runs low, though, that’s when you’ll likely notice warm air coming from the vents. You’re getting the circulation you want but not the cooling power.
You can top off your refrigerant with minimal effort. You may hire someone from an HVAC company, but if you watch some helpful YouTube videos, you can probably do this yourself.
If you correct these problems, you should get cool air again.
