Your heat pump is powerful, efficient, and convenient… when it works. It looks fine, it’s still cooling your home (or heating it), but it’s not switching to the other mode. Every time you try, it just refuses. There are a few things that could be wrong that we’ve seen in all our time providing heat pump repair in Arlington, WA. Here’s what you need to know.
First, Change Your Air Filter
At the end of the day, a heat pump is still a forced-air HVAC system. It needs a fresh intake of air, and a clean filter provides that while preventing debris from getting inside and mucking up the heat pump’s internal components.
But when that filter gets dirty, airflow is restricted, and it can’t do its job properly. Your air filter should be changed out every 30-90 days depending on use. If you ask us, simply keeping a 30-day recurring reminder and switching your filter out at that point is best.
If you’re in disbelief at how much dust your filter captures, hold a brand-new filter up to your current one. It captures so much, but eventually, it becomes a hindrance instead of a helping hand to your heat pump.
It’s Likely a Solenoid Issue
The solenoid in your heat pump is there to physically cause the change when you switch from one mode to another. But a solenoid can be rather finicky, and sometimes they get jammed. These can either just be stuck, or they may break from time to time and need to be replaced. Thankfully, they’re rather inexpensive parts and won’t be the downfall of your heat pump.
Maybe it’s Your Thermostat
Your thermostat isn’t just the controller for your heat pump–it’s the brains of the whole operation. Your heat pump doesn’t inherently know the temperature, or when to turn off and on. That’s the thermostat’s job.
It gauges the room temperature, then sends an “ON” or an “OFF” signal to your heat pump. So if your thermostat isn’t gauging the temperature properly, it can make it look like your heat pump is slacking. There are a few things you can do:
- Clean Your Thermostat: If it’s hardwired in, dust could be blocking the signal. Thick dust can form around wires fairly quickly.
- It’s Miscalibrated: Your thermostat needs to be calibrated to know what temperature it is. Think of it as a sensitivity to the air temperature in your house. You need to adjust it so you’re not getting temperatures that are artificially too high or too low.
- The Battery is Dying: For wireless thermostats, change out the battery. The screen needs a shockingly low amount of power to stay on, but the batteries might be drained enough that it’s not sending the proper signals to your heat pump anymore.
Keeping the Heat On
Even though heat pumps can have some unique problems that you may not expect, we’re able to fix anything that could ever be wrong with it. Whether it’s the solenoid or not, give us a call or submit a form on our contact page, and we’ll get your heat back on before you know it.
Contact Cozy Heating Inc. today to schedule your heat pump repairs as soon as possible.