How to Troubleshoot the Heat Pump in Your Yuma Home

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If your heat pump stopped cooling, does not power on, or has some other problem, you certainly want to resolve the issue right away to get your Yuma area home comfortable again. Read on to see how to troubleshoot the heat pump, and try to solve or narrow the problem.

Powering On

Heat pumps use electricity to manipulate refrigerant to cool and heat our homes, which is the primary reason for theHow to Troubleshoot the Heat Pump in Your Yuma Homeir great efficiency. If your heat pump is not powering on, there are a few areas to troubleshoot the heat pump:

  • Take a look at the circuit box to see if a breaker has tripped.
  • Check the service disconnect switch located on or near the indoor air-handling unit. The switch sometimes looks like a standard wall light switch.
  • If there’s no display on the thermostat panel (for electronic thermostats), change the batteries. If your thermostat is hard-wired, check the circuit panel again for a tripped breaker.

Mechanical Concerns

If your heat pump is powered on, but is not cooling, try the following steps:

  • Turn off the heat pump and take a look at the indoor air-handling unit for ice accumulation on the evaporator coil. If the coil is covered in ice, turn the thermostat to the FAN or ON setting to defrost the ice. If ice develops again, call your HVAC contractor.
  • Check the air filter. If the filter is dirty, replace it with a new one.
  • Switch the thermostat to HEAT mode (with a temperature set high enough to kick on the heating) to see if the heat pump is working in this cycle. If it’s heating, there may be an issue with the reversing valve.

Noisy Operation

Take unusual noises seriously, or you may have a serious repair on your hands.

  • Grinding and squealing noises indicate a problem with the air-handling unit or the compressor.
  • Rattling and clamoring noises from the air ducts indicate duct issues, which would explain the lack of cooling to one or more rooms. Metal tape should be used to wrap loose ducts.

For more information on how to troubleshoot the heat pump in your Southwest Arizona home, please contact us at Hansberger Refrigeration and Electric Company.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Yuma, Arizona about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about heat pumps and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

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