Are you noticing weak airflow or no air from the vents? Your HVAC may have airflow problems. With poor airflow, you will also experience hot and cold spots in your home and pressure imbalance. So, should you call an AC repair service right away? You should if you want it fixed as quickly as possible. However, if you’re curious or want to try some fixes yourself, read this guide.
Fixing HVAC Airflow Problems
Clean The Air Filters
Air filters are easy to clean yet they are ignored by many people. Cleaning or replacing air filters doesn’t feel like a huge deal that would impact the performance of your HVAC system, but it does.
As your AC air filters keep filtering out dust and other airborne particles, they become clogged with them. When they become dirty enough, they can’t allow enough air in. This reduces the airflow of your air conditioner.
If air filters are not cleaned for long or cleaned less frequently, the reduced airflow will keep making the AC work harder increasing its risk of breaking down. Therefore, clean or replace the air filters every month.
Open All The Vents Or Check Them For Blockages
Some homeowners close the registers of the room that they don’t frequently use. They think that it will increase the cooling ability of their HVAC in summer. However, this is a huge misconception. If you want to ensure optimum airflow and the AC working without problems, keep all the vents and registers open.
Another problem that can happen with vents and registers is furniture or anything else blocking them which also impacts the airflow. So, check the vents for obstructions and remove them.
Clean The Outdoor Unit
In summer, the condenser unit also called the outdoor unit has the responsibility to disperse heat that’s generated from the condenser coils carrying the refrigerant. This is why there is also a fan in the condenser unit to help with the heat dissipation.
If the outdoor unit is dirty, blocked with debris, or obstructed by nearby shrubs or items, its job will become difficult. So, you will notice insufficient cooling and weak airflow.
Therefore, go ahead and check your condenser unit. Remove leaves and shrubs from it. Then open the casing, and clean the unit including the condenser coils and the fan.
Inspect The Ductwork
Your HVAC air filters try to block dust, but some dust keeps getting through them and accumulating in the ductwork. When there is enough dust, it can clog up the ductwork, restricting airflow.
Moreover, another common issue with air ducts is rodents or birds taking shelter in them. Their presence reduces the airflow. Moreover, if they expire in the ductwork, it can also lead to a bad smell coming from the ducts.
Furthermore, leaks in the ductwork can also be the culprit of poor airflow. Leaks are holes or cracks in the walls of the ductwork, leaking air.
The solution is to schedule a ductwork inspection which will show you any problems regarding the ductwork. It might only require cleaning or there may be a bigger problem of damaged ductwork. Even in the case of a leaky ductwork, you should not fret because some can be fixed by using tape or sealant.
Is Your HVAC Size The Problem?
It’s a common misconception that installing a bigger HVAC unit will lead to better performance and cooling. Actually, a bigger AC unit can cause various problems because of short cycling. It means the air conditioner’s cooling cycle will turn on and off very frequently. This is not good for ACs as it can increase the rate of wear and tear. With that, your air conditioner’s airflow will also take a hit and there will be weak airflow.
On the other hand, an undersized HVAC system will always have to work harder to cool the space that’s bigger for its ideal requirements. It will also cause extreme wear and tear and overheating. Moreover, you will always feel that the airflow is poor.
So, in case there are cooling or airflow problems, you must hire an expert to check if the size of your HVAC system is right for your house or not.
Similar to the HVAC size, undersized or oversized ductwork can also lead to poor airflow.
Check The Thermostat
Many people focus more on the air conditioner and its parts forgetting about checking the thermostat when a faulty thermostat can also silently mess up the airflow.
Firstly, check the thermostat settings like the temperature settings and the fan settings. They should be what you usually set.
Then, move on to checking the batteries of the thermostat. Even when a thermostat is fine but its batteries are almost drained, it might show unexpected problems like weak airflow or no cooling. A prominent sign of drained batteries is a turned-off display of the thermostat. So, take out its batteries and replace them with a fresh set.
Moreover, a dirty thermostat can also affect the airflow and cooling. So, if you haven’t cleaned it for some time, then try cleaning it now. Remove its cover and clean the parts gently.
Lastly, a faulty thermostat will obviously make things for your air conditioner difficult by not giving the cycling on and off signals at the right time. The temperature of the house may increase, but the thermostat might not signal the AC to turn on. This will feel like the airflow is poor or the AC is not cooling when the culprit would be a malfunctioning thermostat.
In this case, get the thermostat checked by an expert. They will check everything and if it’s faulty, replace it with the type and quality of thermostat you prefer.
Inspect The AC Blower
The AC blower ensures sufficient airflow by flowing air through the ductwork. There are fans that keep spinning for airflow. So, what would happen if they shut down or slow down due to obstruction or a malfunction? There will be weak or no airflow.
Therefore, inspecting the AC blower is important as well when finding out the causes of poor airflow. Dust and grime on the fan blades can slow them down. Moreover, a failing motor can also slow down their rotation. In worst cases, the fans won’t work due to a blown motor. AC blower inspection can be complicated so it’s better to let an expert take on the job of checking it.
Have The Refrigerant Levels Checked
Low refrigerant in the HVAC coils is associated with many problems because it’s as important for air conditioners as blood is for us humans.
Refrigerant levels can go low due to many reasons like improper installation, wear and tear, lack of maintenance, etc. Many times, there are tiny cracks or holes formed in the condenser coils that leak the refrigerant. With leakage, the effectiveness of your HVAC system including its airflow and cooling reduces.
Refrigerant levels should be checked by an expert. As the low refrigerant is caused by any of the problems mentioned above, those problems must be fixed before refilling the refrigerant.
Conclusion
There are many causes of poor HVAC airflow. So, you should first check the air filters, the outdoor unit, the thermostat, and then other parts. For fixes, it’s advised to hire HVAC companies Vienna VA which have experienced professionals for performing HVAC inspections and repairs.
