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AC Not Shutting Off? Here’s What to Do

Your air conditioner is designed to work in cycles. It turns on and off at regular intervals for cooling, but should never stay on for extended periods of time.

If you think that your air conditioner is running without shutting off, it may be time to schedule air conditioning repair in Hampton, NJ.

And our team is here to help. Even though it may seem like your air conditioner is still working great without any problems, allowing your air conditioner to continue running without stopping can lead to a breakdown. It’s better to get the issue checked out sooner rather than later. You can keep reading to learn more about what to do if your air conditioner won’t turn off.

Troubleshooting Steps

Check the Thermostat

The first thing you want to check is your thermostat. It’s easy to think that something is wrong with your air conditioner, when really it is your thermostat that is the problem. Check the settings on your thermostat to make sure they are correct. Try turning the temperature up a couple of degrees higher than the room temperature to see if that signals your air conditioner to turn off.

If this doesn’t work, there’s also a chance that your thermostat is miscalibrated. When this happens, our team can come in and reset it. If dust is the problem, we can clean it out or we can also replace the batteries if the charge is running low. In rare cases we can replace your thermostat with a brand new unit if needed. 

Change the Filter

The next place to look is your air filter. If your air filter is particularly dirty, it may be blocking airflow coming into the system. Without enough airflow coming into the system, your air conditioner is having to work harder to produce the same results.

It may be staying on longer for cooling cycles instead of turning off and on like it should normally. Sometimes it’s as easy as changing your air filter for a new one. If this solves the problem, great! If not, you can move to the next step or give our team a call.

Clean the Outdoor Unit

Having air flow blocked from exiting your air conditioner is just as much of a problem. You also want to check the outdoor unit for excessive dirt buildup. If the fins look dirty, you can turn on your water hose and use a gentle water pressure to rinse the unit off and get rid of dirt.

When the outdoor unit is dirty, heat and humidity cannot escape like they usually would. Instead of releasing outside, this heat gets trapped in your AC system and releases back into your home, combating the cooling efforts of your air conditioner.

Open Vents

You also want to check the vents around your home and make sure that all of them are open. You may be tempted to close a vent here or there to redirect airflow to other areas of your home, but that is not the way a central air conditioner works.

Your ducts have a unique layout designed specifically for your home, and you want to make sure that all of the air vents are open so that your home can cool down equally all over. If you’re having any issues with your home having hot or cold spots, give us a call and we can help to rearrange your ducts so they can work more effectively.

Schedule Professional Service

And of course, if none of these things work and your air conditioner still won’t shut off, you can give our team a call. If you’re concerned about your air conditioner’s operation, you can always turn off the circuit breaker attached to your air conditioner to force the unit off. When our team visits your home for a service appointment, we can get down to the source of the problem and fix it.

Contact Schaible’s Plumbing & Heating Inc. to schedule an appointment for air conditioner services that get the job done.

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