Having trouble with your air conditioner or heater? Before calling an HVAC professional, it’s a good idea to inspect your thermostat to see if the problem might be originating there. After all, your thermostat “tells” your heater and air conditioner when to turn on and off and controls the temperature in your home. Your heating and air conditioner basically “follow its orders.”
Here are some common thermostat issues that can lead to heating and cooling problems in your home.
1. The settings aren’t what you thought they were.
Trust us: this happens to everyone, especially if there are kids in the house who like to play with the thermostat from time to time.
Here is one of the most important settings you need to know about: “on.” When your thermostat is set to “on,” your system’s fan will keep blowing air through your home, whether the air is being cooled or heated or not. “On” simply means that the fan is on.
If you want your AC to cool your home, you’ll need to set the thermostat to “auto” or “cool.” Similarly, if you want your heater to warm your home, you’ll need to set the thermostat to “auto” or “heat.”
2. The thermostat has lost its wifi connection.
Many modern thermostats get updates and bug fixes via wifi. If your thermostat relies on wifi for these updates but has lost its wifi connection, it may be susceptible to glitches or not respond to remote commands.
In some cases, your router might actually be the problem, in which case you’ll need to turn your router off, wait about 1 minute, then power back on and wait for it to reestablish a wifi connection to your devices. If the problem is with the thermostat itself, consult the manufacturer’s directions in your usual manual or online.
3. The thermostat is out of batteries.
Some thermostats are battery operated. Once batteries get low on power the device can start to act strangely or may fail to display or respond altogether. In this instance, the solution is simple: replace the batteries, and your system should be back up and running in no time.
4. Your thermostat was installed in a less-than-ideal location.
Your thermostat reads the temperature of its immediate surroundings. Consequently, you want to install your thermostat in a location that doesn’t get temperature extremes.
For instance, if your thermostat is next to an appliance that gives off a lot of heat, it might cause your AC to run constantly and your heater to rarely turn on. Inversely, if your thermostat is installed in a drafty area, you might be wondering why your AC never turns on even when the rest of your house feels like Death Valley.
Need assistance getting to the bottom of your home’s heating and cooling issues? Our friendly HVAC experts at Premier Indoor Comfort Systems, LLC are here to help! We proudly service homes in the Atlanta Metro Area & Western NC: (770) 268-2422.