Tips to Troubleshoot Your Thermostat

Tips to Troubleshoot Your Thermostat in Southwest Florida

Advice from Best Home Services’ Heating & Cooling Experts

Is there a worse discovery than waking up soaked in sweat because your air conditioning decided to break down in the middle of the night? Before you call in an HVAC service technician for AC repair, it may be beneficial for you to take a look at the thermostat. Sometimes a broken thermostat is to blame, and there are some things you can do to troubleshoot your thermostat in your Southwest Florida home. Take a moment to read through these thermostat troubleshooting tips from the heating and cooling experts at BHS. If you’re unable to determine what’s wrong yourself, we’d be happy to pay you a visit. Contact us to schedule residential or commercial HVAC service anywhere in Southwest Florida, including Tampa, Naples, Fort Myers, and Sarasota. In business since 1980, we’re a well-trusted HVAC company.

Check the Obvious Things About Your Thermostat First

Your home’s thermostat works hard to maintain your indoor comfort. You set it to a specific level, and it uses temperature sensors to switch on and off to manage your desired heating and cooling settings. The word thermostat itself comes from two Greek words: thermo, meaning heat, and statos, meaning standing, which is also related to expressions such as maintaining the status quo. Whether you have a traditional thermostat or an energy-efficient digital programmable thermostat that runs on modern smart technology, you should be able to see if it’s turned on or not. You should first confirm it’s on and your circuit breakers are working, followed by checking your heating and cooling settings to ensure you have it switched to the proper levels. If you have a digital programmable thermostat, check to see if the override function is engaged.

Gently Clean the Dust Around Your Thermostat Area

Dirt and dust can accumulate inside your thermostat the same as anywhere else in your home. If your thermostat is dirty, it can become clogged. Layers of dirt and dust can affect your heating and cooling system’s electrical and mechanical components until its operation becomes compromised. Using a small paintbrush or a specially formulated electronics air cleaner, you may gently clean inside your thermostat area if you’re comfortable doing so. You could also call BHS if you’d rather our professional HVAC technicians clean your thermostat for you to avoid damages to sensitive parts.

Have You Considered Your Thermostat’s Location?

Location isn’t just important in real estate. Where your thermostat is located inside your home also matters. If it’s situated too close to powerful electronics that generate excess heat or in direct sunlight, this can affect its temperature readings. Traditional thermostats must also remain level for the mercury inside them to register properly. While troubleshooting your thermostat, you should give some careful consideration to its location and whether or not it’s level.

Check and Adjust Your Thermostat’s Anticipator

Your thermostat’s anticipator is the component responsible for desensitizing it to slight temperature variations once a room’s temperature and your set temperature are close. When this component malfunctions, your HVAC system will begin to cycle on and off more frequently, which could lead to damages and an eventual breakdown. Most anticipators operate between 0.2 and 0.8 amps. You’ll find the anticipator as a metal tab near a scale measuring the amps from shorter to longer. If your system is cycling on and off, you may need to adjust your anticipator one calibration mark closer to the longer setting. If your system doesn’t ever seem to reach your desired temperature settings, you may need to adjust your anticipator one calibration mark closer to the shorter setting. Once you’ve made some adjustments to your anticipator, give your system a few hours to react before making any further ones.

Have You Considered Rebooting Your HVAC System?

Anyone who’s ever experienced technical issues with their computer at work can attest to IT’s philosophy of rebooting the system before doing anything else. Your HVAC system is no different. Sometimes it needs to be rebooted to restore functionality. To restart your HVAC system, adjust your thermostat to the heat position and lower the temperature level until it shuts off. Then go to your breaker panel and safely turn off the power to your thermostat and system. Be sure to leave it off for at least a minute before turning it back on again.

Is It Time for a Thermostat Repair or Replacement?

If none of these thermostat troubleshooting tips have seemed to do any good, it may be time to call the heating and cooling experts at BHS. We specialize in heating and cooling repairs for furnaces and AC units alike. We won’t know what’s wrong with your HVAC system until we inspect it. It could be a simple thermostat repair, or it could be something more extensive. Your thermostat may be beyond repair, and it may be time to consider a replacement. If that’s the case, we’d be happy to explain all your available options, including digital programmable thermostats. The U.S. Department of Energy says you can save as much as 10% on your annual energy bills when you switch to a digital programmable thermostat!

Have Questions About Your Thermostat? Call Best Home Services

Any time you have a question or concern about your thermostat or HVAC system in general, feel free to contact BHS day or night. We offer around-the-clock furnace and AC repair throughout Southwest Florida, including Fort Myers, Sarasota, Naples, Tampa, and many surrounding communities. One of our trusted HVAC technicians would be happy to take a closer look and diagnose your thermostat issue. Check out our testimonials to see why you should feel comfortable calling BHS to the rescue!

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