Fan Problems That Might Affect Your Air Conditioner And Repairs That Could Be Necessary

Your central air conditioner uses fans to circulate air through your home and to cool the refrigerant in the condenser. Your AC has a fan in the air handler and one in the condenser, and when one malfunctions, the problem might be with the motor or electronic parts. However, the fans themselves can develop problems too. Here are some fan problems that might affect your AC and how to fix them.

Problems With The Air Handler Blower Fan

The fan in an AC air handler is also called a blower. It's shaped like a squirrel cage with several small fins around the outside of the cage. One of the leading causes of trouble with the blower fan is when it gets clogged with dust. If the fan is dirty, it won't spin freely and that can strain the motor. If the motor overheats, your AC may shut down to protect itself.

An AC repair technician can fix this problem by cleaning the fan thoroughly. However, if the dirty fan caused damage to the motor, additional repairs might be needed. The cage might also work loose and rattle or scrape against the air handler. This problem might be solved by positioning the fan properly and tightening the connections, but if fins are damaged, the blower cage might need to be replaced.

Trouble With The Condenser Fan

The condenser fan has blades shaped more like a traditional box fan. The large blades can be seen through the top of the condenser and they spin to cool refrigerant as it goes through the cycle of changing from liquid to gas to liquid.

The condenser fan blades can get jammed when debris gets in the cage. The fan can also become unbalanced or loose, and the fan might make loud noises when it needs to be repaired. An AC repair technician might tighten the fan or replace it. If a fan blade has cracks from hitting the condenser or from stress, it may be best to replace the blades since a cracked blade might get loose and cut a refrigerant line and lead to the need for expensive refrigerant repairs.

AC fans are fairly inexpensive, so it's worth replacing your fan if needed so further damage to your AC can be prevented. The repair technician needs to choose the right part for your brand of AC since fans vary in size, power needed for operation, and the direction of spin.

When either fan in your AC system goes bad, your air conditioner won't function properly. The AC may even overheat and shut down. Keeping the fans in good condition is important for an AC that operates optimally, and getting quick repairs when needed is important too so you won't have to deal with a complete AC breakdown on a hot and humid day.

For more information, contact a local AC repair service.