My air conditioner is still "working", and when I go downstairs it's
cooler and I can feel the difference. The problem is that for some
reason there is not enough cold air coming out to cool my upstairs.
It's been working fine for the past 3 years, so this is a recent
problem that has developed.

I thought it might be the filters, so I've changed the filter upstairs
where the air goes into the HVAC unit, and the filter in the HVAC unit
itself that resides in my HVAC room next to my garage. I tried
resetting the breakers for my air conditioning unit, and I see the
compressor fan turning outstairs.

It's summer time, so the temperature can easily get into the 90's. I
have my thermostat set for 75 degrees, with the "Cool" selection (as
opposed to "Heat"), and with the fan set to Automatic. When I place
my hand over the vent upstairs I can feel the cool air coming out, but
it doesn't seem to be as strong as it used to be...and perhaps not as
cold. As the upstairs temperature never seems to hit the 75 degree
mark, the unit keeps going and going and going which surely can't be
good for my electricity bills.

Is there anything else I can try? What do I do next?

Thanks
Sam

There is one thing you can try....

If the filters were dirty and restricting flow they may have caused your
system to ice up. That would slow down air flow and prevented the system
from cooling.

You would need to turn your ac off for a while. Let the fan continue to
run. Your thermostat should have a fan position that allows it to run even
when ac and heat aren't running. As the ice thaws out airflow will
increase. Once you believe airflow is normal put the ac back on. Give it
plenty of time to thaw out. If it works properly it is all set otherwise
you will have to call a pro.





wrote in message
ps.com...
My air conditioner is still "working", and when I go downstairs it's
cooler and I can feel the difference. The problem is that for some
reason there is not enough cold air coming out to cool my upstairs.
It's been working fine for the past 3 years, so this is a recent
problem that has developed.

I thought it might be the filters, so I've changed the filter upstairs
where the air goes into the HVAC unit, and the filter in the HVAC unit
itself that resides in my HVAC room next to my garage. I tried
resetting the breakers for my air conditioning unit, and I see the
compressor fan turning outstairs.

It's summer time, so the temperature can easily get into the 90's. I
have my thermostat set for 75 degrees, with the "Cool" selection (as
opposed to "Heat"), and with the fan set to Automatic. When I place
my hand over the vent upstairs I can feel the cool air coming out, but
it doesn't seem to be as strong as it used to be...and perhaps not as
cold. As the upstairs temperature never seems to hit the 75 degree
mark, the unit keeps going and going and going which surely can't be
good for my electricity bills.

Is there anything else I can try? What do I do next?

Thanks
Sam

wrote in message
ps.com...
My air conditioner is still "working", and when I go downstairs it's
cooler and I can feel the difference. The problem is that for some
reason there is not enough cold air coming out to cool my upstairs.
It's been working fine for the past 3 years, so this is a recent
problem that has developed.

I thought it might be the filters, so I've changed the filter upstairs
where the air goes into the HVAC unit, and the filter in the HVAC unit
itself that resides in my HVAC room next to my garage. I tried
resetting the breakers for my air conditioning unit, and I see the
compressor fan turning outstairs.

It's summer time, so the temperature can easily get into the 90's. I
have my thermostat set for 75 degrees, with the "Cool" selection (as
opposed to "Heat"), and with the fan set to Automatic. When I place
my hand over the vent upstairs I can feel the cool air coming out, but
it doesn't seem to be as strong as it used to be...and perhaps not as
cold. As the upstairs temperature never seems to hit the 75 degree
mark, the unit keeps going and going and going which surely can't be
good for my electricity bills.

Is there anything else I can try? What do I do next?


Call an HVAC company to have it looked at.

It could save your more money than it's costing you to run it day-after-day.

Art wrote:
There is one thing you can try....

If the filters were dirty and restricting flow they may have caused your
system to ice up. That would slow down air flow and prevented the system
from cooling.

You would need to turn your ac off for a while. Let the fan continue to
run. Your thermostat should have a fan position that allows it to run even
when ac and heat aren't running. As the ice thaws out airflow will
increase. Once you believe airflow is normal put the ac back on. Give it
plenty of time to thaw out. If it works properly it is all set otherwise
you will have to call a pro.





wrote in message
ps.com...
My air conditioner is still "working", and when I go downstairs it's
cooler and I can feel the difference. The problem is that for some
reason there is not enough cold air coming out to cool my upstairs.
It's been working fine for the past 3 years, so this is a recent
problem that has developed.

I thought it might be the filters, so I've changed the filter upstairs
where the air goes into the HVAC unit, and the filter in the HVAC unit
itself that resides in my HVAC room next to my garage. I tried
resetting the breakers for my air conditioning unit, and I see the
compressor fan turning outstairs.

It's summer time, so the temperature can easily get into the 90's. I
have my thermostat set for 75 degrees, with the "Cool" selection (as
opposed to "Heat"), and with the fan set to Automatic. When I place
my hand over the vent upstairs I can feel the cool air coming out, but
it doesn't seem to be as strong as it used to be...and perhaps not as
cold. As the upstairs temperature never seems to hit the 75 degree
mark, the unit keeps going and going and going which surely can't be
good for my electricity bills.

Is there anything else I can try? What do I do next?

Thanks
Sam




Icing is a very definite possibility -- I've had it happen myself when
the house has a massive influx of humid air. One aggravating factor, as
stated, is reduced flow. Another is a loss of coolant which can happen
over several years and never be noticed until the evaporator suddenly
becomes a solid block of ice.

I guess that another possibility could be someone messing with damper
settings but that seems less likely than the other two.

Defrosting the evaporator is easy but can be slow even with the fan
running continuously. And if the house is uncomfortably warm to begin
with the time can seem even longer. I could always tell in my
installation exactly how the process was going by how often the
condensate pump kicked in.

--
John McGaw
[Knoxville, TN, USA]
http://johnmcgaw.com

wrote:
My air conditioner is still "working", and when I go downstairs it's
cooler and I can feel the difference. The problem is that for some
reason there is not enough cold air coming out to cool my upstairs.
It's been working fine for the past 3 years, so this is a recent
problem that has developed.

I thought it might be the filters, so I've changed the filter upstairs
where the air goes into the HVAC unit, and the filter in the HVAC unit
itself that resides in my HVAC room next to my garage. I tried
resetting the breakers for my air conditioning unit, and I see the
compressor fan turning outstairs.

It's summer time, so the temperature can easily get into the 90's. I
have my thermostat set for 75 degrees, with the "Cool" selection (as
opposed to "Heat"), and with the fan set to Automatic. When I place
my hand over the vent upstairs I can feel the cool air coming out, but
it doesn't seem to be as strong as it used to be...and perhaps not as
cold. As the upstairs temperature never seems to hit the 75 degree
mark, the unit keeps going and going and going which surely can't be
good for my electricity bills.

Is there anything else I can try? What do I do next?

Thanks
Sam

First warm air rises and the most heat in your home likely comes in from
the roof. Those two things usually mean the second floor is going to be
warmer than the first in most homes unless the cooling system was designed
to correct for it. Zoning or careful balancing of a properly sized system
can take care of it, but of course during the heating season you would need
to rebalance unless you have a zoned system.

I am going to suggest that right now many areas of the US and I would
guess may other areas, are experiencing much hotter than usual temperatures.
Home cooling systems are NOT generally sized to handle temperatures as hot
as many areas are now experiencing. To do so would mean more expensive
systems, less energy efficiency and less comfort when the system was
temperatures were less hot.

If you are like many people the only real problem is in the evening and
especially when headed up to bed at night. One possible solution is a
supplemental A/C just for that room (like a window unit).

Good Luck


--
Joseph Meehan

Dia 's Muire duit

On Jul 11, 12:52 am, wrote:
My air conditioner is still "working", and when I go downstairs it's
cooler and I can feel the difference. The problem is that for some
reason there is not enough cold air coming out to cool my upstairs.
It's been working fine for the past 3 years, so this is a recent
problem that has developed.

I thought it might be the filters, so I've changed the filter upstairs
where the air goes into the HVAC unit, and the filter in the HVAC unit
itself that resides in my HVAC room next to my garage. I tried
resetting the breakers for my air conditioning unit, and I see the
compressor fan turning outstairs.

It's summer time, so the temperature can easily get into the 90's. I
have my thermostat set for 75 degrees, with the "Cool" selection (as
opposed to "Heat"), and with the fan set to Automatic. When I place
my hand over the vent upstairs I can feel the cool air coming out, but
it doesn't seem to be as strong as it used to be...and perhaps not as
cold. As the upstairs temperature never seems to hit the 75 degree
mark, the unit keeps going and going and going which surely can't be
good for my electricity bills.

Is there anything else I can try? What do I do next?

Thanks
Sam

My first guess would be that the unit may have lost some refrigerant
over the years. If it was new unit three yrs ago that is a very good
possibilty. I'd say call in a A/C tech to check it out.

On Jul 11, 6:04 am, Meat Plow wrote:
On Tue, 10 Jul 2007 22:52:08 -0700, samadams_2006 wrote:
My air conditioner is still "working", and when I go downstairs it's
cooler and I can feel the difference. The problem is that for some
reason there is not enough cold air coming out to cool my upstairs.
It's been working fine for the past 3 years, so this is a recent
problem that has developed.

So actually it's not working. Call a tech and have it looked at.

It could be many things and a pro is your best option. My neighbor had
the wrong filters so long his AC coil was cloged shut, cleaning the AC
coil, blower fan, condensor coils, having proper charge are normal
maintenance items that can save you alot. I have my unit checked every
year on a cheap maintenance contract,

On Tue, 10 Jul 2007 22:52:08 -0700, wrote:

My air conditioner is still "working", and when I go downstairs it's
cooler and I can feel the difference. The problem is that for some
reason there is not enough cold air coming out to cool my upstairs.
It's been working fine for the past 3 years, so this is a recent
problem that has developed.

I thought it might be the filters, so I've changed the filter upstairs
where the air goes into the HVAC unit, and the filter in the HVAC unit
itself that resides in my HVAC room next to my garage. I tried
resetting the breakers for my air conditioning unit, and I see the
compressor fan turning outstairs.

It's summer time, so the temperature can easily get into the 90's. I
have my thermostat set for 75 degrees, with the "Cool" selection (as
opposed to "Heat"), and with the fan set to Automatic. When I place
my hand over the vent upstairs I can feel the cool air coming out, but
it doesn't seem to be as strong as it used to be...and perhaps not as
cold. As the upstairs temperature never seems to hit the 75 degree
mark, the unit keeps going and going and going which surely can't be
good for my electricity bills.

Is there anything else I can try? What do I do next?

Thanks
Sam

Common story all across the northern hemisphere.

With a poorly working system, the 2 main things that we need to do
first are to adjust the charge - IE, add or remove some refrigerant
and to clean the coils.

When those two are done, then you can look for duct leaks and
caulking around doors and windows and adding curtains and not using
the shower without turning on the fan to draw out the moisture and bla
bla bla.

On Tue, 10 Jul 2007 22:52:08 -0700, wrote:

Is there anything else I can try? What do I do next?

What floor is the thermostat on?

Say the second floor? It is suggested to check for a large hole behind
the tstat and seal it up. Hot air travels down the wall from the attic
and it will affect the tstat performance.

Las Vegas had some (areas) 122F temps over the Holiday. I think
"official" was 116F. We cooled down to about to 110F +/- .. for the
next week.. at 105F I might have to get a sweater.

--
Oren

...through the use of electrical or duct tape, achieve the configuration in the photo..