You’re noticing all these heating and cooling problems in your home. You’re having high utility bills and you never seem to get the temperature set to a comfortable level. Could there be something wrong with your home’s thermostat?

Signs Something Is Wrong

1. 1. The AC or heat suddenly stops working.
   2. Your room temperature never seems to match the thermostat’s setting.
   3. The system is continuously running.
   4. The system turns on and off too often, called short-cycling.
   5. Your thermostat seems to be unresponsive and possibly has no power.

Sounds like one or more of your issues? Let’s see some simple fixes.

How You Can Make Sure It’s Your Thermostat’s Fault

• • Check your electrical breakers.

• • Be sure your furnace or other HVAC system component isn’t obviously malfunctioning.

• • Make sure no outside-leading doors or windows in the home are open. This throws off the internal temperature of the house that the HVAC system is trying to regulate.

All of these aren’t applicable to you? Well then let’s check out why your thermostat may be bugging out. Some of them are fairly simple fixes. Thermostats are pretty sensitive instruments, after all.

Troubleshooting

• • Yes, it’s a bit silly to outright mention, but make sure you have your thermostat on the right settings. Things can accidentally get bumped so that “AC” becomes “Heat” in the summer, or you may not realize yours is set to the on-off energy conservation of “Auto” mode instead of the continuous “On” mode.

• • Adjust the temperature by just five degrees in either direction. See if that changes the behavior of the system.

• • Gently clean around, on, and behind your thermostat, especially if it’s mechanical and not electric. Dust and grime can seriously throw off sensitive thermostat sensors like that little lever inside mechanical models.

• • If applicable, change the thermostat’s batteries.

• • Use a simple level device to check that the thermostat box is hung or sitting level. Mechanical components especially can be thrown off by sitting at a wonky angle.

• • Assess if your thermostat is in a prime spot. If it’s away from main living areas or placed in especially sunny or drafty areas, temperatures could be falsely estimated by the thermostat.

When It’s Time To Call The Pros

• • If you see any frayed or damaged wires or other important-looking bits.

• • If it seems like your thermostat or another important part needs to be replaced.

• • When you simply can’t figure out why the heating and cooling problems are occurring.

Remember to get your system inspected often to minimize the chances of confusing issues popping up. Especially in winter, many HVAC companies attribute around three-quarters of their no-heat calls to a lack of prior maintenance on the system. Don’t wait until it’s an emergency! If you’re not confident handling any heating and cooling problems, or this particular one just has you stumped, rest assured that the HVAC service professionals at Minnick’s can help you figure it out.