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Storms, Electrical Damage & Your HVAC

Here in Southern Maryland, we've experienced hurricanes, thunderstorms, lightning, high winds and fallen trees knocking out power lines and have been left in the dark. But when the power came back on, were you left without air conditioning?

Thunderstorms can bring on lightning strikes which can cause a power surge tripping a circuit breaker. Or maybe there’s an outage because a transformer blew which could result in a surge when the power comes back on. The circuit breaker’s job is to protect your equipment. Do you know how to reset the breaker and turn the a/c unit back on?
  1. Start by turning the air conditioning system OFF at the thermostat. 

  2. Next, go to your electrical panel and find the circuit breaker for the a/c unit. Reset the circuit breaker by flipping the switch to OFF and then back to ON. 

  3. Be sure to wait 30 minutes making sure the thermostat is OFF. Doing this will give your air conditioner’s internal circuit breaker time to reset. If your thermostat is trying to cool, it won’t reset. 

  4. After 30 minutes, reset the thermostat to COOL. Usually, your air conditioner will come back on but if it doesn’t, you may have electrical damage. 
How to tell if there is electrical damage.
If you reset the breakers and you still don’t have air conditioning, you may have electrical damage. Here’s what to check:

The Circuit Breaker Won't Reset 
If you have more than your air conditioning failing to come back on, then the electrical damage extends beyond your a/c.  If this is the case, it probably happened as a result of a power surge caused by lightning, or even a surge that happened when the power came back on. In this case, you’ll need to call a licensed electrician to repair the damage.

OR

The A/C Circuit Breaker Continues to Trip 
If after turning your A/C back on you see that the breaker continues to trip, this may not be a sign of electrical damage to your air conditioner, but more. If it’s only the air conditioning circuit breaker that keeps tripping, it could be that your air conditioner is probably overheating, causing it to draw too much power.

CAUTION: If a circuit breaker is tripping repeatedly, do not turn it back on! The circuit breaker’s job is to protect your home’s wiring and equipment by shutting off the flow of electricity when the current flow gets too high. If it keeps tripping, there is a risk of fire when you turn it back on. 

If you’re having recurring issues with your air conditioner, contact Tri-County Aire to request service. 

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