Properly working heating and cooling systems are integral aspects of a comfortable home or workplace, especially during summer. One malfunction can leave you sweltering in the heat and make your home unbearable. When temperatures start to cliumb outside, the last thing you want is to find your portable air conditioner knocked out by a simple malfunction. The good news is that not every malfunction is a disaster. Though some require professional help, a great many can be resolved on your own, without the need for a technician. Before you spend any money on repairs, take some time to see if any of these simple fixes are enough to get your portable AC up and running again.   Portable air conditioners are ideal for cooling small areas, such as bedrooms or living rooms, or for providing supplemental cooling in places central AC systems can't reach. Because they're small units, the two primary reasons for inadequate cooling are incorrect sizing and extreme ambient temperatures. The size of an air conditioner refers to its cooling power, not its physical proportions.

Portable ACs are sized according to their BTU ratings, and if your portable AC has the wrong BTU rating for the size of the room you're trying to cool, its efficiency will be affected. A unit with too many BUTs will cause the unit to cycle off too quickly, while a unit with too few won't be powerful enough to affect the ambient temperature. To find out whether your portable air conditioner is the right size for the  room it's in, meaure the length and width of the room. If your room is oddly shaped, try breaking it up into smaller shapes like squares and triangles. Calculate the area of a triangle my multiplying the base by the height and dividing in two. Once you've calculated the area, consult our portable air conditioner sizing guide so see what size air conditioner will work best in that space. If you're on the cusp of two different sizes, always choose the bigger one. It's okay to have a little more BTU than you need, just so long as it's close to the correct size.On the other hand, if the ambient temperature is too high, it can also cause insufficient cooling.

As portbale AC units release cool air out into the room, they vent hot air from the compressor outside. This constant venting causes a pressure imbalance that pulls in warm air from the other areas, including adjoining rooms and the outdoors. Normally, if the room is properly sealed and all the doors and windows are closed, the air coming is never enough to overwhelm the portable AC unit. If there's a leak, or if the ourside temperature is extremely high, the air conditioner may not be able to generate enough cold air to cool the room. Sunlight can also heat a room faster than your portable air conditioner can cool it. If temperature keeps rising, check for leaks and close the blinds. It may be enough to swing things the other way.   Portable Air Conditioner Buying Tip: Visit our sizing page to learn how to properly size a portable AC, or visit our product library to learn how to maximize your portable AC's efficiency.If your portable AC won't start, the most likely explanation is lack of power.

Start by making sure the power cord is correctly plugged in and that the cord itself isn't damaged. Check the wall plug and circuit breaker as well. Try resetting the circuit at the breaker box, or changing the socket or outlet. Only after these steps have failed to resolve the problem should you take the portable air conditioner to a qualified electrician to have the fuse replaced.  ac units for older homesCheck to make sure the timer is not on, as an active timer can cause the unit to cease operation. my ac unit will not turn offAlso, if  the ambient temperature in your room is lower than the set temperature, this may cause your portable air conditioner to shut off. how much does a commercial ac unit costTo remedy this, shut the unit down and wait for the room temperature to rise before turning the the unit back on again.

There are many reaons for lack of air flow. The most common cause is a clogged filter. Remove the grill in the back of the unit and clean any excess dust off the filter with a brush or a vacuum, then rinse if off with some running water. Also check for clogs in the evaporator or condenser coils, which you can see in the top compartment of the AC unit after you remove the grill and filters. If you spot any, remove them with your vacuum hose attachment. The second reason your portable air conditioner may not be venting air is frost on the cooling coils, also known as the evaporator coils. This happens when the low temperatures around the coils causes water to condense. If the water doesn't drain properly, it can build up and freeze around the coils, hampering air flow. To check the coils the same as above. Remove the back grill and the filters and inspect the top compartment. If you see any fronst, turn the unit off and let it defrost. Once the ice has melted, normal operation should resume.

Read our article on automatic defrosting and frozen AC coils to learn more. The third reason may be the compressor has overheated. Check the hose and window unit to make sure they're still venting air properly. If the portable AC is unable can't vent the heat generated by the compressor, it will build up inside the unit and cause the compressor to shut down. Straighten the hose, remove any blockages, and position the unit further away from the window. If the it's too close, the hose can sag restrict air flow (visit our venting FAQ to learn more). Let the unit cool for 15-30 minutes and then turn it back on. Normal operation should resume. If it doesn't, it's time to call a qualified professional. The problem may be a malfunctioning fan motor, a low refrigerant charge, a refidgerant leak, or a blown compressor. Do not attempt to repair these issues yourself. Contact a local reapir man or, if your unit's under warranty, contact the manufacturer for help.This time of year, especially when it gets cold outside in the evenings, we get many calls from homeowners concerned that there is cold air blowing out of the duct registers in their home when their heat is running.

We wanted to address this, as many times homeowners think this is an issue with their heating and cooling system, but if they have a heat pump, it's actually typically a very normal process. Don't know if you have a heat pump? Check out this article, on how to tell if your unit is a heat pump or air conditioner. In the summer, a heat pump picks up the heat in your home and dumps it outside. In the winter, your heat pump picks up heat from the outside and dumps it into your home (yes, even when it's cold outside). Now, that may be hard to grasp, but this is the way it works. In the summer, your indoor coil is cold (and pulls humidity out of the air, and comes in the form of water) which is drained from that PVC pipe located on your roof, or side of your house. In the winter, that same humidity is pulled out of the air, but it comes in a form of frost on the outdoor coil (condenser). If you see frost on the outdoor coil, it is natural to the process and it is not a sign of any kind of malfunction- the reason the coil is cold falls back to the second law of thermodynamics- which states that energy always moves from areas of higher concentration to areas of lower concentration.

As the frost builds up on the outdoor coil, it could potentially inhibit the ability for air to flow across that coil. Once the frost builds up, your heat pump automatically goes through what we call, a defrost cycle to keep allowing the air to flow across the coil freely (which is a necessary function of your system). You may have noticed a loud sound right before cold air blows out through the vents in your home. The sound you hear is the reversing valve switching your unit over to cooling mode. Frost on the outside coil is condensation that forms up on the coil in the form of frost. When a heat pump begins the defrost cycle, the outdoor fan shuts off and the system switches over to cooling mode. The reason for this, is that in the cooling mode, the outdoor coil actually becomes hot. This is because hot refrigerant circulates through the outdoor coil, which in turn melts the frost. The reason the fan shuts off during this process is so the system doesn't pull the cold air from the outside across the coil while the hot refrigerant circulates.