Why is My Air Conditioning Not Cooling or Heating?

Reading Time: 4 minutes

Why is My Air Conditioning Not Cooling or Heating? Written by Airway Group Team

If you find one day that your air conditioning system is not cooling effectively or failing to heat up when placed on a warm setting, it can be inconvenient at best and the cause of significant problems at worst. In certain environments, air conditioning does more than make us comfortable – it manages the temperature of food in catering premises and volatile materials in science labs, and it helps stop servers from overheating and causing chaos for any organisation with a computer network. In this piece, we’re going to look at the potential causes of your air conditioning unit’s malfunction.

Airway AC

Incorrect Thermostat Setting

We’re not trying to insult your intelligence here, but it could be possible that you or someone else in your building has mistakenly changed the thermostat temperature or mode setting. Check this first, so you can eliminate the most simple cause straight away. If someone has actually set it incorrectly, the remedy is extremely straightforward – just change it back!

Airway AC

Airflow Restriction

Much like a blocked drain, if there is something obstructing the flow through your air con unit, the amount of air that flows through the system is reduced. Over time, the air filter will collect dust and debris – by regularly checking and cleaning your filter, you can prevent this from happening. If you know you haven’t had maintenance on your AC in a long time, or you know that your filter hasn’t been replaced for a while, it could be time to arrange maintenance and/or repairs.

Airway AC

No Outside Unit Electricity

Air conditioning systems often consist of two separate units – an outdoor one and an indoor one. They both do different jobs, but they have to work in tandem. If one stops working, the whole system fails. The indoor unit is the one that blows the cool or hot air through the room, but if the outdoor unit isn’t working, then the air won’t be at the desired temperature. If you notice that your air conditioning is blowing warm or cold when it shouldn’t, check the main fuse board and also the unit isolators.

If it turns out, in fact, that the AC is responsible for a blown fuse, you need to contact a professional repair company immediately, as there could be a serious issue.

Airway AC

Dirty Cooling Coils

The coils within the air conditioning unit are responsible for absorbing the heat from the air in your home, and there is also a set of coils within the outdoor unit of the system that transfer the heat from your home to the outside. When these coils become dirty, they conduct heat far less efficiently between themselves and the air that gets blown over them.

Airway AC

Refrigerant Leak

In order to move the heat through the coils in your system, refrigerant is required. You can imagine, then, that if there is a refrigerant leak in your system, that the heat won’t be moved very well, if at all. This will mean that any air coming out of your system will be warm (or too cold, when placed on a warm setting). This issue will require professional assistance, so contact a trusted air conditioning company.

Airway AC

Blocked Condenser

As your condenser unit is usually located outside your home, there is always a chance it could become blocked by shrubbery or bushes. This can hinder their ability to release heat from the condenser coils, which means your home won’t cool down or heat up properly.

Airway AC

Old System

Finally, a common issue amongst air conditioning units is that they simply get old. This happens to every appliance and electronic device, and after a certain amount of time, they simply won’t work like they used to. It’s important that you ensure your system is maintained regularly, that way it will work as efficiently as possible for as long as possible. Once you start to notice a decrease in performance, and none of the above faults can be found, it’s probably time to think about buying a new system.

Airway Air Conditioning are proud to be a leading supplier, installer and provider of maintenance and repairs for air conditioning units from the world’s leading manufacturers. For more information, please feel free to get in touch with us today and we’ll be more than happy to help.