Your air conditioner comes on, runs for a bit, then shuts off. That’s the way it’s always been, but now… now it’s not turning off at all, even though you can tell that it’s plenty cold enough in your home. While it’s great that it works well, it seems a bit confused, so let’s talk about what you can do to fix that.
First of all, this always comes down to AC repair in Philadelphia, PA for one major reason: this is not a DIY type of problem we’re talking about. Apart from these two methods we’re about to share with you, there’s nothing else you should attempt to shut down your AC, because it’s simply not safe without an experienced HVAC technician to carry out the task. If your AC won’t power down, there are a couple of things that you can do.
Turn Off the Power at the Outdoor Switch
If you go outside to your air conditioner cabinet, you should see a wire going up the side of your house. While some installations can look different, there’s usually a wire like this that leads to a plastic flip-up cap. Underneath that, you have a switch that should eliminate all power to your air conditioner.
Flip the switch, and listen for the sound of the AC powering down. It should be pretty noisy, so anything stopping should be noticeable. You can also look at the fan blades on the top of your AC cabinet, and if they stop moving, you’re sitting pretty.
However, you should still go inside and check if there’s any air coming out of the vents. There is a chance that the blower motor is still running, which means electricity to the whole AC hasn’t been cut. Just the cabinet.
Power it Down From the Breaker
In your home, there’s a circuit breaker that you can use as a last-ditch effort to power down your air conditioner. This is a metal box that’s normally embedded in your wall in one room of your house. It can vary depending on your home’s design, but it should be accessible from indoors.
Once you find it, open the front. You’ll see a bunch of horizontal switches (which are hopefully labeled correctly). Find the label that says “AC” or “Air Conditioner” and flip that switch. It may look like two switches that are joined by a metal bracket in the middle. That’s perfectly okay.
If, for some reason, that doesn’t remove the power going to your air conditioner, it means the switches could be labeled wrong. At this point, you’ve done all that you can, and it’s time to leave it to your HVAC technician.
It’s Time for a Technician
Now that you’ve powered it down, your HVAC technician will take it from here. It’s always best to call your AC company when you’ve confirmed that your air conditioner won’t power down, then shut it down while waiting for them to show up.
Contact Synergy3 today to schedule your AC repair as soon as possible.