I'm having a tough time with my upstairs AC unit. I have two AC units in my house—one for downstairs and one for upstairs. The downstairs unit is working just fine and keeping the temperature steady, but the upstairs one is just getting hotter. It's currently at 84 degrees, even though the fan is running. I checked the filter and it needs to be replaced, but I don't have a new one until tomorrow, so I cleaned it as best I could. I turned the unit off for a few hours, then turned it back on for about 15 minutes, but the temperature only went up. Now it's late, and with it being 70 degrees outside, I'm trying to cool the place down with all the windows open and a fan in the hallway, but nothing seems to work. My husband's out of town, and I can't afford a technician right now. Any tips would be super helpful!
3 Answers
There's usually a breaker box near your outdoor compressor unit. It's a metal box where you can pull a plug to cut off power to the outside unit, which is an important safety step. If you're changing the capacitor, just take a photo of how the wires connect to it before replacing it. Be cautious when handling it too; even with the power off, there can still be some shock risk. You can get replacement capacitors online, but you might need one right away, so check local supply stores too!
First off, check if both outdoor unit fans are running properly. If they're not, it could mean the capacitor is blown, which is typically a cheap fix (around $20 for the part). Some HVAC companies might charge you over $300 to replace it because they'll often suggest you need a whole new system! Look into it, it might be an easy fix for you!
It sounds like your compressor capacitor might need replacing, which is a straightforward job and usually costs $10-20. If you’re comfortable with doing it yourself, you might save yourself a service call that ranges from $100-200. Keep in mind, if the capacitor fails, the system might run but just circulate hot air instead of cooling.
I’ve never looked for the breaker before, but I think I could kill the power if needed. I'll definitely check both fans and hopefully it's just a quick fix with a new part and filter!
Thanks for the tip! I checked and both of them sound normal. I’ll look into replacing the capacitor!