When appliances malfunction, overheat, or develop dangerous electrical faults, their circuit breakers trip. By tripping, circuit breakers close electrical circuits and stop the flow of electricity. If your air conditioner keeps tripping its breaker, the following are six possible reasons why.
1. Insufficient Maintenance
Poorly maintained air conditioners work harder than ACs that receive annual tune-up service and regular air filter changes. If your air conditioner has a dirty air filter, its fan motor must work harder to draw air in and move it. If your air conditioner’s evaporator and condenser coils have thick coatings of dust or other debris, it will have a harder time transferring humidity and heat.
Insufficient cooling system maintenance can lead to functional problems like icing, overheating, and short cycling. It can also cause your AC to repeatedly trip its breaker due to increased electrical demand and an elevated operational temperature.
2. Loose or Worn Wiring
During annual AC maintenance, HVAC technicians carefully inspect all electrical components. They check for loose connections, worn wiring, damaged contactors, and other electrical issues that might trip your circuit breaker. If you skipped preseason tune-up service, repeated circuit breaker trips could indicate a potentially serious electrical fault.
3. A Faulty Capacitor
At times, your air conditioner requires more electricity than your electrical system can supply at once. To overcome this deficit, air conditioners have run and start capacitors. These devices constantly draw and store power. They use their energy stores to boost your AC when it initiates or completes cooling cycles. When a run or start capacitor fails, your compressor could draw too many amps at once and trip your circuit breaker.
4. Fan Motor Problems
To prevent fan motor burnout, air conditioners turn themselves off whenever fan motors overheat. Your air conditioner’s fan motor could have a bent or jammed component, insufficient lubricant, or age-related problems with its insulation.
5. Compressor Issues
The electrical winding inside your air conditioner’s compressor should never touch the compressor’s metal casing. If it does, it will create a direct short to the ground. This causes a massive surge of power and instantly trips the circuit.
If your AC has a refrigerant leak, your compressor could have an increasingly difficult time pressurizing and depressurizing refrigerant to pump it throughout your cooling system. With an increased workload and greater electrical demand, your compressor will overheat and trip your air conditioner’s circuit.
6. An Overloaded Circuit
DIY AC installation can lead to many costly and potentially dangerous electrical issues. With proper installation, air conditioners should have their own dedicated circuits. If your AC shares its circuit with another appliance, using both appliances at once will overload the circuit and trip the related breaker.
You can avoid frequent circuit breaker trips with professional AC installation and routine AC maintenance. For expert air conditioning services in Helena, MT, get in touch with Big Sky today!