July is the hottest month of the year in Iowa and there couldn't be a worse time to have your home's AC fail on you. I'll never forget my summer in 2022 when my wife and I lost our AC unit for 12 days towards the end of July. What a nightmare!

Sadly, 99 times out of 100, your AC is only going to show signs of a problem when you need it the most. Unless something falls on the unit and damages it, animals try to make your unit their new home, or somehow the weather causes damage to the unit, it's almost always going to fail when you're using it.

During the summer, Iowa temperatures can reach 100 degrees with heat indexes upwards of 105+. Having your AC go out on a day like that can begin to feel like a real emergency. If your AC isn't working correctly on a hot day this summer in Iowa, there are a few things you could look into yourself before calling a technician and having to pay for something you could've potentially fixed yourself.

Check These 5 Things First if Your AC Fails

Call Smart House has helped us with 5 steps you could take before you need to make a phone call to an HVAC company. They want to help save you some money with your AC unit, instead of charging you for a problem you could've potentially solved yourself.

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Depending on who you call, the flat fee for having an HVAC technician coming to your house can be anywhere from $75-$200. The cost will obviously increase dramatically if you need substantial repairs. Check these 5 things first and if they don't fix the issues with your AC, then you're probably going to have to call a professional.

1. Check Your Circuit Breaker 

If your AC doesn't have power...it's not going to work. This may seem obvious but checking your breaker to see if the cooling system has been tripped for whatever reason, could be an easy fix. If it was a one time power overload issue, flip the breaker back on and fire up the AC. If the breaker is tripped again...there might be a bigger issues.

2. Check Your Thermostat

A theme you'll begin to notice in this article is a lot of these "issues" you should check first might seem pretty obvious. Sometimes it's hard to remember all of these little details and it's funny how sometimes the easiest thing can solve a problem and you just didn't see it. You'd be surprised how many times a thermostat is causing AC issues. Whether the thermostat has dead batteries or the 'cool' switch was accidently changed to heat. It happens!

3. Check Your Shut-Off Switch

If you have a new-ish AC unit, many of them now come with easilly accessible on/off switches. These have become popular in newer units so technicians can easily turn on/off the power to your unit. These will normally look like a regular light swtich and are normally found near your HVAC system. Depending on the switch location, it could've been bumped to off by you or one of your pets. Make sure this switch is on.

4. Check the Air Filter

Just about every single troubleshooting article you read on the internet, regarding your HVAC system, will want you to check the air filter. It's one of the most obvious and easy to forget issues people experience. If your airfilter is clogged, it can cause "evaporator coils to freeze up and completely shut down your AC." If your AC doesn't appear to be working like it should, check your air filter and change it if it's dirty.

5. Check Your AC Drain Pan

*It was difficult finding a photo to use for this final step so this video will have to do*

AC units cool the air in your home and they also help dehumidify the air as well. The extra moisture in your home is send to your units "condensate line. If this line is clogged or the AC units 'drain pan' is overflowing, it can trigger a switch that automatically shuts off your AC to prevent flooding. You could use a shop vac to clear the line or to suck up water from the drain pan if you have one.

All of these tips were provided by Call Smart House!

Currently, we are getting a bit of a break from the extremly hot temperatures in Iowa. But, like all weather in Iowa, at some point it will change, and we'll see multiple days of 90+ degrees. If you find yourself in a warm house with an AC unit that has stopped working, you might as well try looking at these 5 things first, before being charged for a simple fix.

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