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How to make sure my air conditioning won’t break down

With the increase in popularity of air conditioning units, whether in homes or office premises, it’s important to be aware of the most common air conditioning problems and breakdowns. Here are some tips to help ensure your system is safe and operating smoothly.


Check your thermostat

One of the most common air conditioning unit problems is related with thermostat settings. For most offices or commercial premises, 18°C is a reasonable temperature, often a bit lower if work involves rigorous effort. If you set the thermostat to 30 degrees, this is very high and can put excessive strain on the system, especially when the temperature outside drops dramatically.

If you get a fault code on the system, then it can be worth turning the temperature down and then switching off the unit. Leave it for 10 seconds then restart it to see if it then works as normal.

Air conditioning obstructions

Another common problem can be obstructions around the units of the air con system. This applies to both indoor and outdoor elements of the system. For example, if you block the indoor vents or the air discharge points, this can stop the system from working properly. So, ensure that all elements of the system are free from blockages.

Similarly, make sure that the sensors are in a good position – sensors that are knocked out of position can cause the system to not work properly. If the sensor is touching the coil or is too close to it, this can also cause false readings.

False alarms

In business premises, make sure you check for any possible false alarms before calling out an engineer to see a malfunctioning air conditioning system that is in fact perfectly healthy. This is most common in the winter when water leaks from the outdoor condensers. This is perfectly normal, but it is worth watching where the water is leaking onto. If it leaks onto a public footpath or road, then this can lead to a build-up of ice and a potential accident.

Winter often means that air con systems sound louder than normal, and this is also normal. When running, units stop producing heat for periods and this is when the system will go into defrost mode to stop ice building up on the condenser coil. If this happens and the system doesn’t start up again, this is when you might need an engineer visit.

Air conditioning and Winter

Colder months do put more stress on air conditioning units as they work harder to maintain the desired temperature in the rooms. Regular servicing is important to help keep the system in good working order and ensure that if there are any problems, they are caught before you need to rely on the system for heat.

To find out more about heating your business premises and commercial air conditioning installers in Bristol contact TEK engineers. Call today on 01179 523355 or use our contact form for a quick response.