If you’ve already switched your heat pump over from cooling to heating, then your home may already be warm on cooler days. But if you haven’t switched over your heat pump setting yet, you may be in for a surprise when you do. What if your heat pump stays stuck on cooling? If you skipped annual maintenance last year, it may not switch over to heating as it should.
Your heat pump is very reliable, but it still requires a little TLC to keep it in peak condition. Even if you don’t invest in maintenance, your heat pump may work perfectly this year. Either way, if you have questions about heat pumps in Paradise, TX, our team is here to help. In the meantime, you can keep reading to learn more about what’s going on when a heat pump won’t switch modes.
Minor Heat Pump Issues
Sometimes, your heat pump won’t switch over from cooling to heating for a reason that is easy to fix. For example, you may want to check your thermostat to make sure that it is also set to heating. If you have a smart thermostat, you may have pre-programmed settings that are interfering with the changeover.
Or your air filter may be clogged. It’s easy to forget to change your air filter when you only have to do it once a month at the most. But leaving your air filter in for too long can allow so much dust and dirt to build up that it actually blocks airflow into your heat pump system. If your air filter is overdue for being changed, try that and see if your heat pump will cooperate by changing over to heat.
Major Heat Pump Issues
Unfortunately, heat pump problems aren’t always an easy fix. Your heat pump may truly be malfunctioning, and if that’s the case there are several possibilities. A broken reversing valve is most often to blame. The reversing valve is what allows your heat pump to function as both an air conditioner and a heater.
The refrigerant leaves your compressor and enters the reversing valve. Depending on whether you want to heat or cool your home, the refrigerant then moves to the indoor or outdoor coils. The reversing valve controls where the refrigerant goes based on your heating and cooling needs.
Other times, there’s a disconnect between the thermostat and your heat pump. If your thermostat cannot provide the correct signal, your heat pump may not operate correctly. Sometimes this is an easy fix and one of our technicians can recalibrate your thermostat. Other times, your thermostat needs to be replaced completely.
Contact Don’s AC Service, Inc today for your HVAC and indoor air quality needs!