Why Isn’t My Air Conditioner Keeping My House Cool?
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Are you constantly having to check the thermostat to see if some wiseacre has gone and turned up the temperature because it’s hot as blazes in your house and you’re just trying to get a little relief from the hot as blazes temperatures outside? But no, no one has messed with the thermostat, your poor AC is just struggling to reach the blissful temperature you assigned it.
You are not alone. Many North Texans are asking themselves, “Why isn’t my AC keeping my house cool?”
Are Your AC Coils Clean?
LOL. They don’t have any coils! The Inspector said, “This reminds me of those clear phones in the 1980s where you could see the machinery inside.” Remember those? Anyway, Your outside compressor normally has coils on it and they need to be cleaned annually. Otherwise, they collect dirt and grime and that makes it harder for your AC to transfer heat which makes the unit have to work harder to cool.
Are My Ducts Blocked or Disconnected?
Well, in this case they’ve had a bunch of nails poked into them. But ductwork can get turned, blocked, torn, disconnected, or otherwise compromised in many ways. It’s important to have your AC serviced at least annually, if not biannually, to ensure that everything is clean and running properly.
Are Your Condensate Lines Clean?
In this new construction house, Inspector Tracy found water stains in the bathroom and moisture readings in the walls which led him to do some further investigation, whereupon he found the disconnected primary condensate line. The primary condensate is a drain pipe that carries away condensation from the AC. It usually runs to a guest bath or a secondary bathroom sink. So if you hear phantom dripping noises occasionally in one of your bathrooms, that’s what that is. Since the disconnection was right over the bathroom, it was leaking into the ceiling and walls instead of running through the pipe as intended, damaging this brand-new home.
These lines have a tendency to get clogged over time, and when that happens, the secondary condensate line takes over. The water that’s supposed to run through the primary line runs into the AC’s drain pan and then out through the secondary condensate line, which drains outside your house. You’re meant to notice that water is dripping outside your house, so you can then unclog the primary condensate. Unfortunately, many people don’t notice, time passes, and the secondary line gets clogged too. This can result in water overflowing, damage to the attic, and the AC freezing up or even shutting down. Condensate lines are another great reason to have your AC serviced by a professional, so you don’t have to mess with that, but if you want to, here’s a video.
If you are asking yourself, “Why isn’t my AC keeping my house cool?” this summer, get that question answered with a home energy evaluation. We’ll find all the ways your home is losing energy and give you a full report on how to improve.
