When you get home, you notice that something is off.
It’s quiet. Too quiet.
Where’s that familiar hum of your air conditioner?
Then, you feel it: Sweltering heat. Without your AC, temperatures in your home are rising fast.
Your AC keeps tripping the breaker, and you need a solution ASAP! If you repeatedly trip your breaker, you could cause damage to your electrical system (and may even start a fire).
So, what’s causing your problem? We’ve listed the most common reasons why this can happen:
Dirty Filters & Condenser Coils
How clean is the air inside your home?
It’s more polluted than you might think. On average, the air inside your home is 2-5x more polluted than outdoor air!
Luckily, your AC unit can protect you from that with a filter.
Since air passes directly through that filter, the dirt and dust it collects can impede the airflow in your air conditioner. As your AC unit works harder to push air through, it draws more electricity and may trip the breaker. That’s why it’s important to change your filter regularly.
The other culprit is a dirty condenser coil. Part of your AC unit is housed outdoors. It’s exposed to the elements year-round, from heavy rainfall to dirt and grime. Naturally, it gets dirty after a while. And if that dirt gets inside your condenser coils (or heat exchangers), it may be causing your circuit breaker issues.
The takeaway here? Don’t neglect your air conditioner! It needs annual maintenance for a good reason.
Refrigerant Issues
Your AC unit uses refrigerant to help cool the air. The refrigerant changes from a gas to a liquid as it absorbs and releases heat. But if you have a refrigerant leak, the levels will begin to drop.
Once that happens, your AC will need to work harder to cool the air, costing you more in electricity and putting extra strain on your breaker. To resolve this issue, you’ll need to call a technician to replace the refrigerant lines.
Faulty Compressor
Think of a compressor as like a car engine, but for your air conditioner—it’s what controls the temperature and pressure of the refrigerant. To do that, it draws quite a bit of electricity. So if your compressor is failing, your circuit breaker will feel the effects of that.
Broken Coil Fan or Motor
To get rid of heat, your air conditioner uses a coil fan to expel it from your house and blow it outside. But if the fan blades are dirty or not working properly, your AC will overheat and draw more power than necessary to cool down.
