Why Does My Air Conditioner Turn Off After About 15 Minutes?

An air conditioning unit is not meant to turn off itself by 10-15 minutes unless there is a problem.

One problem that might cause it is what we call short cycling.

Short cycling is commonly the automatic turning off or shutting down of an air conditioning system every single time.

Short cycling is definitely bad for your system for some reasons like:

• You are wasting energy and increasing your energy cost; therefore, you are wasting money too.
• You cannot achieve your desired temperature.
• There is something wrong or faulty with your unit.

Short cycling should be diagnosed and solved as soon as possible before it ruins the whole AC unit.

The good thing is that you can handle it yourself pretty well. So, you might want to keep reading as we give you the information you need regarding air conditioning units that keeps on shutting off after 15 minutes.

Your air conditioning unit should give you a cold atmosphere, not hot or warm atmosphere. When you notice that the air coming out is a bit warm or hot, then there might be a problem with your AC.

Potential Fixes For AC That Keeps On Turning Off

Some of these solutions are relative, which means that one might work and the others might not. Likewise, these solutions will not fix an AC unit that has faulty parts. However, you can always check it first before calling a professional.

You might want to do the following:

Keep an eye on your thermostat settings

You might check of your thermostat is working just fine. But how do you this? Try to set the thermostat temperature lower and see if the unit will stay longer. If it stays longer, then the unit is not broken.

Check your thermostat’s timer

The thermostat comes with a timer. You might want to check the manual and locate where the thermostat timer is. Once you found it, change the timer and see if there will be a change in the unit's running time.

Consider the thermostat location

Before installing your thermostat, you might want to make sure that the location is perfect. Try to find a place near the shady side, or near the AC vent and windows to detect the indoor temperature and not the hotness outside.

However, if the current location of your thermostat is wrong, you might want to relocate it.

If you have checked all of these potential causes and it seemed like there is nothing wrong, you might want to call a professional to check it.

Common AC Problems That Cause The Unit to Shut Off

There are a few reasons why your AC unit keeps on shutting off, such as the following:

Overheating

Overheating is commonly caused by the build-up of grime inside your compressor unit. Moreover, it might also cause refrigerant leaks and other potential causes.

Refrigerant leak

The leak in your refrigerant can lower your AC unit's pressure, which will result in freezing of evaporator coils and then turning on and off repeatedly.

Oversized AC unit

If your AC unit is considerably larger for your little space, it will quickly cool your room and immediately shut itself off. This is probably the reason why there is less in running time than you expect.

Clogged air filter

The air filter of your AC unit should always be free from dirt. There are also instances wherein you need to change air filters at least twice every one to two months, depending on your home conditions.

There is a need for new air filter if you have any pets in your home and how often you clean your air filters. If your air filters are dirty, it can restrict airflow and cause freezing of evaporator coils.

Faulty thermostat

An electrical problem or damaged wiring may cause a defective thermostat.

AC run capacitor failure

The AC capacitor is responsible for sending energy to the motor. This is the component essential in turning your AC unit on. If your capacitor is broken or wears out, your AC unit will not function normally.

You might want to check it by locating your condenser unit and check if the fan is spinning. If it is not spinning, push the fan using a long stick while keeping your hands safe.

Check if the fan will start and if it does, it means that the capacitor is faulty.

Meanwhile, if it does not spin and there is a strange noise, the capacitor is totally broken. You might want to call an HVAC technician for capacitor replacement.

Lack of maintenance

Your air conditioning unit requires regular maintenance at least twice a year to ensure it is correctly running.

Call Techccol HVAC professional today!

Sometimes, dealing with your air conditioning issues can be daunting, and you might find yourself stuck on the situation with no right tools and skills to do the task. If this is the case, you might want to grab your phone and reach Techcool HVAC professionals today!

We provide high-quality HVAC services in North Las Vegas, Las Vegas and Henderson.

Call us on (702) 915-7624 today!