We love our central air conditioning systems, and so do many of the residents of Brandon, MS. They’re affordable, straight-forward, and they get the job done. But, like any AC system, it does have some unique problems that you won’t run into with other types of air conditioners. We’ll tell you about a few problems your central AC could encounter so you’ll know how to act if it happens.
Hot Spots
The best thing about a central air conditioner is that it’s a cost-effective way to send cool air through to your entire home. But at the same time, it also means that particularly warm rooms will still be a few degrees warmer than the rest of the home—these rooms are called hot spots. Hot spots are common upstairs rooms and in parts of the home where the sun hits the hardest.
If your hot spot is unbearable, one great solution is to install a ductless heat pump in that room. A ductless unit has its own controls built-in and works separate from the central AC, giving you complete control of that room’s comfort.
Low Air Flow From Vents
Imagine if your air conditioner fails to do the one thing it’s meant to do: blow cool air.
It’s not entirely uncommon that your central AC can fail to provide adequate air flow through your vents. There are many potential reasons for it, too:
- Duct Leaks: If your ducts are leaky or disconnected, a percentage of your cooled air will escape, thus wasting energy and failing to cool your rooms.
- Obstructions in the Ducts: Debris or any large blockage in the vents can compromise air flow.
- Undersized Unit: If your air conditioner isn’t powerful enough for your home, it may fail to provide air to the rooms on the farthest end of the home.
Short-Cycling
Short-cycling is what happens when your air conditioner is too powerful for your home. When the AC cools the home down too quickly, the thermostat is tricked into thinking that it’s time to end the current cooling cycle. A normal cooling cycle lasts about 15 minutes, but short-cycling will have your AC turning on and off every couple of minutes. Since startup is the most power-intensive process, it can take a serious toll on your energy bill and on your AC’s components.
The main reason short-cycling happens is that its size was not properly estimated in the first place. Since your central AC is supposed to cool your entire home, you can perhaps imagine how complicated it may be to size an AC—square footage, the number of windows in the home, the average amount of sunlight the home receives per day, and many other factors all must be calculated. Regardless of the difficulty, this is what HVAC contractors are trained to do, so you should never settle for an improperly sized unit.
