An air conditioner whose efficiency has reduced behaves strangely. If homeowners in Port St. Lucie, FL, are keen enough, they can easily spot the indicators of an inefficient air conditioner. In this article, we will discuss signs that show your AC system is operating inefficiently and how to fix the problem.
Poor Indoor Air Quality
Besides cooling the house to your liking, your air conditioner also cleans the indoor air. The AC system has a filter that removes impurities from the indoor air before the air undergoes the cooling process. If you forget to get a new filter after one or two months, the existing filter fails to catch impurities efficiently.
This is because contaminants accumulate on the filter, reducing its capacity to catch more pollutants. As a result, impurities continue circulating in your house, causing respiratory irritations such as runny nose, nasal congestion, sneezing, throat discomfort and watery eyes.
Change your air filter often to keep the indoor air clean. You can set a reminder on your phone to help remind you to change your AC system’s filter.
Weird Smells
Your air conditioner could be the source of the irritating odors lingering in your house. Whenever you detect weird smells from your air conditioner, you shouldn’t ignore them because they show your system has an underlying problem.
Some of the smells you should look out for include burning rubber, musty, rotten eggs and chloroform-like odors. A burning rubber smell may occur when your air conditioner’s parts overheat due to increased friction, while a musty smell occurs when there are biological contaminants growing on your heat pump components. A rotten eggs smell occurs if there are dead rodents in your air conditioner, while a chloroform-like odor indicates there is a refrigerant leak.
Unusual Sounds
Weird sounds associated with a faulty heat pump include banging, continuous clicking, buzzing, whistling, gurgling, grinding and rattling. The longer the underlying issue remains unattended, the more the damage worsens.
Rattling and banging sounds could mean your AC system has some loose components. Capacitor problems cause continuous clicking sounds, while electrical issues cause buzzing noises.
If you hear whistling or gurgling noises from your system, your refrigerant could be leaking. Insufficient lubrication can increase friction between moving parts, causing grinding sounds.
Running Constantly
An efficient air conditioner should cool your living space in cycles. A system that runs constantly shows that there’s an underlying problem.
Some of the issues making your air conditioner run constantly include refrigerant leaks, a clogged air filter, an undersized system, a dirty outdoor component and dirty coils. When you request your service technician to repair your system, they can resolve all the above problems except issues associated with an undersized air conditioner. You must replace the undersized AC system with a correctly sized air conditioner.
Uneven Temperature Distribution
After your air conditioner completes cooling the indoor air, a blower springs into action. The blower distributes the cooled air evenly in your living spaces.
However, if your AC system has a clogged air filter, ductwork leaks or refrigerant leaks, it’ll struggle to maintain consistent temperatures in your whole house. Also, if the AC system’s cooling capacity exceeds your home’s cooling loads, it may short cycle, thus failing to distribute the cooled air evenly in your home.
Drainage Issues
An air conditioner absorbs excessive moisture in the indoor air and transfers it to the environment to make your living space comfortable. If the drain lines are dirty and clogged, they cannot transfer the moisture to the environment efficiently.
As a result, the water accumulates on the drain pan and starts overflowing and leaking into your living space. Schedule maintenance services to have any clogged components in your air conditioner unblocked.
High Energy Bills
Your air conditioner is one of the appliances that can cause a steady increase in your energy bill. An overworking air conditioner consumes excessive electric energy as it tries to meet your indoor temperature needs. The system can overwork due to various underlying issues.
Fortunately, our professional service technicians can easily address all the problems that are lowering your air conditioner’s efficiency. Call our cooling experts at Grimes Heating & Air Conditioning whenever your air conditioner’s efficiency reduces. Our experienced team will respond promptly and work hard to eliminate all HVAC issues they find.
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