When your air conditioner quits without warning, the first place to check is your main breaker box to see if its breaker has tripped. An A/C that’s tripping the breaker is a cause for concern because this safety feature is designed to trip and avert a fire when an electrical circuit gets overloaded.
Why Does an A/C Trip the Breaker?
There are two main issues that can cause an air conditioner’s breaker to trip, and simply touching the breaker can help you determine the underlying cause:
- If the breaker feels hot, leave it shut off and call a licensed electrician because it has probably gone bad and needs replacement.
- If the breaker doesn’t feel hot in comparison to the ones alongside it, it’s likely that an equipment-related issue has caused a spike in the air conditioner’s amp draw and overloaded the circuit.
Why Your Cooling Equipment Might Trip the Breaker
One reason for a tripped breaker that you can easily troubleshoot yourself is a clogged air filter. If your filter is excessively dirty, replace it then reset the A/C’s breaker. If it trips again almost immediately, leave it off and call an HVAC professional to check for these other issues within the cooling system:
- Low refrigerant level. If the level is dropping, a pro can test for a leak, so it can be repaired and the refrigerant recharged so the A/C isn’t being strained and drawing extra amps.
- Leaky compressor valves. When the valves are leaky and need repair, the compressor has to work harder to pressurize refrigerant, and this can increase the amp draw and overload the circuit.
- Bad compressor capacitor. A faulty capacitor can cause a jump in amp draw as the A/C tries to cycle on. When this overloads the circuit, the breaker can trip.
- Condenser fan malfunction. A poorly-functioning fan can’t effectively cool the condenser coil, which reduces its heat transfer capabilities. This makes the A/C work harder, resulting in a higher amp draw.
For expert help with an A/C that’s tripping the breaker, contact the Lorain-area home comfort pros at Energy 1 Heating & Air Conditioning.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Lorain, Ohio about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about air conditioners and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Guide or call us at 440-201-2959.
Energy 1 Heating & Air Conditioning
1 (440) 246-5440
Serving the Lorain, OH Area