Is your home’s air conditioner making loud noises that disturb your family’s sleep at night and give you a headache throughout the day? There are several possible solutions to troublesome A/C noises, but at a certain point, you may have to simply replace the whole system. Here are some noises to look out for and what they could indicate about the condition of your A/C system:
- Banging and/or clanking. These noises are usually due to a loose connecting rod, piston pin, crankshaft or other internal part. Since most compressors on modern air conditioning units are sealed units, the only solution may be to replace the entire part, though sound blankets can be used to temporarily mute the noise. If the clanking or banging is caused by a loose internal part, you may be able to remove the object in question.
- Bubbling and hissing. Hissing sounds usually come from leaks in a refrigerant line. Gas bubbles traveling in the refrigerant line result in bubbling noises. If the leak is in the tubing, a technician can find and repair it. However, if the leak is in the condensing or evaporating coil, repair may not be possible.
- Clicking, rumbling, ticking, rattling. If these noises occur at startup, you probably have loose hardware, such as a bolt, tubing or broken spring. Visually inspect the unit, because you may be able to remove the cause of the noise, if it’s a loose shipping bolt. A piece of tubing could be rattling against your air conditioning cage, and can be easily fixed by bending the tube.
- Buzzing noises at the outside fan motor. If it sounds like the motor is failing, check to see if any wires are loose. Buzzing sounds can indicate problems with electrical connections in your unit and could be dangerous, so call in a professional to address the problem and help you avoid electric shock.
If you’re having trouble with troubling A/C noises in your Indianapolis area home, please contact us at Mowery Heating, Cooling and Plumbing.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Brownsburg, Indiana and surrounding areas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).
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