Summertime is here and it’s a wonderful thing! Except when the temperature and humidity begin to spike a little too high. Luckily, most of us have air conditioning and the luckier ones have central air conditioning.

Central air conditioning is designed to cool the entire house to an even temperature, which is an amazing feeling in the summer months. These units have a very long lifetime, but with constant use and problems the units may encounter, the coolants they use may begin to run low. If your unit is low on coolant, your house may not be cooling down like it should be.

To figure out if the unit is malfunctioning or if you actually need a coolant recharge, conduct these checks around the house:
 Person Adjusting Their Thermostat Thermostat – Before you do anything, make sure the thermostat doesn’t need a reset. Sometimes resetting the thermostat can trigger the system to begin working properly again. For a quick reset, increase the temperature of the house to 85 degrees. Wait about a half hour and then put the temperature to 60 degrees. If you feel the house beginning to cool down then all you needed was a reset. You can also reset the unit by flipping the switch on the circuit breaker. If neither work, you may need a charge of coolant.

Vents – Put your hand by the vent and feel the air coming out. After resetting the unit in the above step, wait 15 minutes and come back to the vent. Sometimes the vents will still push warm air out from the earlier buildup. If 15 minutes have gone by and there is still no cool air coming out of the vents, then a charge of coolant may be necessary.

Frost – A buildup of frost could mean you have a coolant leak. Since the coolant that is used in air conditioners is in a gaseous state, any other element that it may come in contact with will freeze up. Your coolant can be completely depleted if the leak has not been found early. In this case, your air conditioner may be completely out of coolant and will need to be recharged.

Inspect the Unit – Before you go and call someone to come and recharge the air conditioner, take a look at the unit itself. Check the filters, as they can become overfilled with dirt and debris, which will cause a lack of air flow. Excess debris that is blown into the unit can also cause the fans to stop working. Naturally, this will prevent any cool air from reaching the house. If nothing seems to be wrong with the unit, a technician will be needed for further inspection with coolant in hand.

Nothing is worse than a hot summer day with a malfunctioning air conditioning unit. Take it upon yourself and check your system for any problems and try doing a few resets.

If the problem persists, then you may need assistance with recharging your unit with coolant. Trust the professionals at Rusk Heating & Cooling to take care of that for you! With 24 hour emergency care, your air conditioner is in good hands no matter the time. Click here to schedule an appointment today or get in touch with us by dialing:
 Greater Covington: 513-771-4040Indiana: 812-926-3939Northern Kentucky: 859-448-4040Let’s connect on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube too!