Many homeowners in Hampton, VA, value heat pumps for their convenience and efficiency. However, it can be exceptionally frustrating when they start short cycling — that is, turning on and off excessively. These are some reasons your system might do this:
Old and Dirty Air Filters
No heat pump can adequately do its work without sufficient airflow. If its air filters are too old or too sullied by debris, they will inhibit airflow.
As a result, your heat pump may misread the situation and begin working in the wrong mode. You can easily resolve this problem by changing the filters or asking a professional service technician to do so as part of a maintenance visit.
Heat Pump Refrigerant Leak
Refrigerant is the lifeblood of every heat pump, allowing it to heat and cool air as required. However, if some of this substance leaks out of the system, performance failures and bizarre behavior may result.
Thermostat Issues
Your heat pump decides when to turn on and off based on the surrounding temperature and how far that temperature is from your desired level. Hence, a heat pump’s functioning depends on the temperature readings your thermostat records and the signals it sends out. If your thermostat misreads the temperature for any reason, your heat pump will respond by misbehaving.
The reasons for such thermostat trouble are wide-ranging and multifarious. One possibility is that you’ve placed the thermostat in the wrong location. If so, the thermostat might register temperatures that are either higher or lower than those truly prevailing in your home, causing unwanted cycling.
Another possibility is that the thermostat’s batteries have died. Yet another is that its wiring has frayed, and still another explanation might concern some internal technical problem. These latter issues require professional AC or heating repair.
A short-cycling heat pump can be quite irritating, but it need not present insurmountable difficulties. For quick and effective solutions, call Fair Mechanical to request our air conditioning repair services.
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