5 HVAC Issues To Handle With A Professional Contractor

Your heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system’s principal function is to keep your house at a comfortable temperature throughout the year. Homeowners don’t realize the importance of maintaining their HVAC systems until severe issues and frequent malfunctions happen.

If you have some handyman skills, you can clean or replace the air filters in your HVAC system. However, there are also some tasks that only an HVAC expert should perform. According to Bellville, OH air conditioner repair experts and others like them, some maintenance tends to be more complex. Doing it yourself might mean coming in contact with debris, dirt, mold, and mildew.

Naturally, most people don’t have the skills and knowledge to fix complicated problems in their heating and cooling systems. However, you may not have the tools or technical expertise professionals have acquired over time. It’s best to leave such work to the professionals.

On the other hand, ignoring signs and symptoms will eventually lead to a more serious problem that requires a professional contractor to check your systems. If you live in the area, it pays to know what issues will require you to call an HVAC company in Leesburg, VA.

Check out the five common issues below.

1. Weird Noises From Your HVAC System

Furnace noise is a normal part of furnace operation, but there might be a strange sound that’s no longer within the normal range. Inducer and blower motors can whine or squeal when their bearings fail. When such instances happen, it’s best to seek help from an HVAC contractor.

Often, they need to replace the furnace motor. Airflow problems or dirty burners can also cause noise. In the case of grinding noises, it might mean that dirt and debris have entered your furnace’s fans or blower motor.

Alternatively, it might mean that dirt has gotten into the mechanical components, causing friction that could lead to the breakdown of the system. But if you hear clangs and bangs, it might mean that something has come loose. A key component might have been knocked off, broken, or moved inside the blower. The situation might be worse if the sound is extremely noticeable.

Whatever the cause of these strange noises, you shouldn’t ignore them. However, it’s not always necessary to immediately call a professional if strange or unusual noises occur. Perhaps it’s best to observe and monitor when and how often these noises arise. If it’s been more than a couple of days, it’s time to call an expert to check your HVAC system. Thus, there won’t be more significant problems in the future.

The heating and cooling systems are surprisingly complex. When a loose bolt or screw isn’t addressed promptly, it could cause serious problems. Considering the potential cost, you’d rather act quickly than be too late in fixing your furnace.

2. Interrupted Airflow

Your home can feel more comfortable not only with cozy furniture, but primarily with your HVAC system. However, there might be instances when there’s interrupted airflow. Having weaker-than-normal airflow from one or more vents is another common sign that the heating or cooling system needs service.

Some of the things that interrupt airflow include:

• Clogged air filters
• Having an oversized or undersized HVAC unit
• Accumulation of debris in the outdoor unit
• Having blocked or leaking ducts
• Clogged vents
• Low refrigerant levels in your HVAC systems
• A faulty thermostat
• Having oversized or undersized ductwork
• Dirty coils and limited return air vents

When the airflow is interrupted, you know there could be underlying issues, and it’s best to call an HVAC expert. Clogged air filters or partially blocked vents might be to blame. Fortunately, these aren’t significant issues that will cost a fortune.

If you’re somehow knowledgeable about how your HVAC works, you can detect the reason why there are interrupted airflows. Maybe you need to replace your filters. However, it’s best to call the pros when you do it, and if the same issue continues. It’s also a good idea to check around the vents and make sure nothing is blocking them.

3. Pilot And Ignition Issues

The control board is the furnace’s brain, and it sends signals to the igniter and other components. A faulty control board won’t send the correct signals, which can prevent the furnace from igniting.

Aside from this, several other factors can lead to ignition problems. Dirty pilots, flame sensors, or burners can cause pilot outages and delayed burner ignition. This could happen due to your system’s wear and tear in some cases. Some technicians also check the gas supply when this issue occurs.

Gas supply problems can also cause ignition issues in HVAC systems. A too-low gas pressure causes the burners not to ignite properly. Several factors, including a clogged gas line, a faulty regulator, or a leak in the gas line, can cause this problem.

On the other hand, too-high gas pressure can damage the burners and other components in the HVAC system, possibly leading to carbon monoxide poisoning. A blocked gas line causes the burners not to receive enough gas to ignite properly.

If you’re experiencing problems with these elements. like natural gas or high voltage, you should have a trained service technician fix them. While you can do the checkups and determine the cause, an HVAC contractor should be the one to troubleshoot it. You can book an emergency air conditioner repair company, such as Air Makers. 

4. Tripped Circuit Breakers

Heat and Air Conditioning, HVAC system service technician using measuring manifold gauge checking refrigerant and filling industrial air conditioner after duct cleaning maintenance outdoor compressor.

The common cause of a furnace tripping a circuit breaker is overworked blowers. If something is blocking your system’s airflow, your blower will have to work harder. This leads to tripped circuit breakers that signal damage. The circuit breaker offers safety, as overloaded circuits can lead to a fire. So, if your circuit breaker keeps tripping, you may have a serious problem at hand.

A dirty air filter is the most common culprit. It takes your blower longer to force air through a dirty air filter. The blower will trip the circuit breaker in some cases due to this increased energy consumption.

Hence, it’s best to regularly check, clean, or replace your filters. As a general rule, cleaning or replacing the HVAC air filter must be done every one to three months. If you have a high-traffic home, you must clean and replace your HVAC filters more often. However, if the issue keeps happening despite replacing the filters, other issues may be involved. Therefore, it’s best to depend on your trusted HVAC contractor.

5. Unstable Or Uncontrollable Heat Or Cooling

When your home is too hot or too cold, even when you control your HVAC system, there could be some problems with it. When you notice an imbalance in temperature in different areas of your home, it’s most likely a problem with the HVAC system.

Inconsistent temperatures can be caused, for instance, by old air filters. It could also be because of your air ducts. When these two are resolved, yet you still have uneven heating and cooling in your home, it’s best to call a pro.

A professional can help fix unstable heating or cooling by inspecting the system and identifying the cause of the problem. Upon identifying the cause of the problem, the professional can take steps to fix it, which may involve cleaning or replacing filters, adding refrigerant, cleaning or replacing coils, repairing or replacing the thermostat, or repairing or replacing the control board.

Conclusion

Troubleshooting any HVAC system issue isn’t something you should attempt to undertake on your own. Sure, you can observe and monitor how those issues happen. But at the end of the day, you can rest better when the professionals are the ones to tackle the problem. It’s best to hire technicians to handle the five issues stated above.