What is Short Cycling?
When you’re trying to find out if something’s wrong with your air conditioner, you may see or hear references to something called short cycling. Short cycling refers to the phenomenon where your AC will stop working shortly after it is turned on, only to suddenly turn on again and repeat the process after a few minutes. In other words, if your AC is short cycling, instead of staying on, it will cycle on and off multiple times in quick succession.
What Causes Short Cycling?
Most of the time, short cycling is a symptom of a larger issue affecting your air conditioning unit. Some of these issues are caused by inherent problems with your unit or the installation, but most can be easily fixed by one of our HVAC technicians. Common causes of short cycling include:
- An oversized unit
- Clogged air filters
- Frozen evaporator coils
- Low refrigerant levels
- Electrical issues
How Can I Tell If My Air Conditioner is Short Cycling?
When your air conditioner is working properly, you can usually hear and feel the cooled air blowing through your vents. Likewise, you can also easily tell when your air conditioner is short cycling – you’ll only feel that burst of cool air for a few minutes before it stops again, and it may start again a few minutes later without your input.
Why is Short Cycling a Problem?
As discussed, short cycling is almost always a sign that something else is wrong with your air conditioner. If your system’s performance is already being noticeably affected, then it means that the root cause of your short cycling is becoming a major issue and will likely cause your unit to fail in the near future.
Additionally, short cycling can cause your energy bills to skyrocket. Repeatedly starting and stopping in a short period of time requires a lot of energy and doesn’t cool your home as effectively as longer cycles, meaning you’ll be using your AC more often and wasting a lot of valuable power.
How Our Professional HVAC Technicians Can Help
When you notice that your air conditioner is short cycling, your first call should be to our professional HVAC team. We can diagnose the root cause of the issue and offer fast, affordable solutions that can save you from the hassles of high energy bills and expensive replacements. Plus, we can perform essential maintenance that prevents short cycling, such as regular filter replacement and refrigerant refills.
Contact us online or call (219) 240-0610 to get the help you need for your short cycling issues!
