We recommend never turning the thermostat below 70 degrees. If air conditioning is needed during winter months, such as for restaurants or businesses, then a "Low ambient kit" is required and can be installed by a service technician.

If you see ice on a heat pump or air conditioner in the summer there most likely is a problem. Below is a list of possible causes. Items in blue usually require a service call. Items in red however can be addressed, even fixed by the homeowner.

• Bad indoor fan motor- not running/running slow
• Loose, worn, or broken fan belt
• Bad indoor fan relay
• Clogged blower wheel
• Low refrigerant charge
• Restriction
• Blocked capillary tube
• Blocked orifice
• Faulty expansion valve
• Stuck compressor contactor
• Faulty thermostat
• Extremely dirty or damaged indoor coil

• Clogged or blocked air filter
• Supply and/or Return vents closed
• Running air conditioner with windows open
• Setting thermostat too low

The bottom causes in bright green are common problems and can be addressed by the homeowner. One other thing to keep in mind: If you have a central humidifier, make sure it is shut off and if it has a damper - close it for the summer.

Hope this helps, remember - these are just rough guidelines and not all possible situations are covered.

Why is this? When it gets below a certain temperature, in our area around 35 degrees a heat pump loses efficiency and cannot keep up with the heat loss of the structure. When the temperature in the house drops approximately 2 degrees below room temperature, supplemental heat comes on to assist the heat pump (usually in the form of electric resistance heaters). When it gets to within 1.5 degrees of room temperature, the back-up heat cycles off and the heat pump continues running tying to reach temperature but cannot. This usually happens when the temperature is at it's coldest - 0 to 30 degrees.

This is however the way heat pumps were designed to operate. Even though they don't put a lot of heat into the house and they run for long periods of time, they are still quite efficient.

So, if it is very cold out and you desire your house to be a certain temperature, you might have to raise your thermostat by 2 degrees to maintain it. Now, if it isn't extremely cold out and your heat pump isn't maintaining temperature, this indicates a problem.

Below is a list of possible causes. Items in blue usually require a service call. Items in red however can be addressed, even fixed by the homeowner.

• Thermostat not calibrated/not level/faulty
• Low refrigerant charge
• Refrigerant flow-related problem - restriction/bad metering device
• Poor efficiency- needs cleaning and servicing
• Bad reversing valve
• Bad compressor valves
• Compressor not running

• Outdoor unit iced-up
• Snow drift against outdoor unit
• Outdoor unit not running
• Open windows/poorly insulated
• Closed vents

The bottom causes in red are common problems and can be addressed by the homeowner.

Here is a checklist to go through before making a service call:

• Make sure your outdoor heat pump is actually running and that it's not just cycling on the back-up heat.
• If your outdoor heat pump isn't running, check our page on "Outdoor unit won't come on".

Hope this helps, remember - these are just rough guidelines and not all possible situations are covered.

First things first. Please check all of the obvious things before calling for a service-call.

• Is the thermostat on "cool" and turned down below room temperature?
• Is the Power on to the indoor unit? Did you check the breaker?
• Is the Power on to the outdoor unit? Did you check the breaker?
• If yes to these, is the outdoor unit running?
• If no, see if the outdoor unit has a red reset button (most Rheem equipment does, located near refrigerant lines), and push it.
• If that didn't work, see if you have a condensate pump at the indoor unit. If you do, some pumps have a safety switch that shuts off the outdoor unit if the pump overfills and fails to pump. So check the pump to see if it is working.
• If that wasn't the problem, back outside at the unit there usually is a disconnect box mounted on the wall. Some of these have fuses or a breaker inside. If there is a breaker, make sure it didn't trip. If there are fuses, they should be checked. Caution: High Voltage, danger of electrocution. Please do not attempt this unless you are familiar with working with electricity.

After having checked all of these things and your unit still isn't running, now you can call for service.

If your outdoor and indoor units ARE RUNNING but not cooling, you will most likely need to make a service-call.

Below is a list of possible causes. Items in blue usually require a service call. Items in red however can be addressed, even fixed by the homeowner.

• Low refrigerant charge
• Refrigerant flow-related problem - restriction/bad metering device
• Poor efficiency- needs cleaning and servicing
• Bad reversing valve
• Bad compressor valves
• Duct leak in unconditioned space

• Clogged air filter
• Outdoor coils blocked or very dirty
• Open windows/poorly insulated
• Closed vents
• Humidifier running

Hope this helps, remember - these are just rough guidelines and not all possible situations are covered.

Below is a list of possible causes. Items in blue usually require a service call. Items in red however can be addressed, even fixed by the homeowner.

• Faulty thermostat
• Faulty contactor
• Faulty time-delay relay
• faulty thermostat cable
• Unit off due to an open safety device- (low pressure, low temp, high pressure, high temp...)
• Faulty control module

• Thermostat not set properly
• Emergency or shut-off switch turned off
• Blown fuse in panel box
• Circuit breaker tripped or off- (sometimes a breaker will trip but it won't move)
• Outdoor disconnect turned off- (some have an internal pull-out plug)
• Condensate pump safety switch opened- (check pump, usually located near indoor unit)
• Off on outdoor reset button
• Unit "locked-out"- (reset by turning off then turning back on)

The bottom causes in red are common problems and can be addressed by the homeowner.

Here is a checklist to go through before making a service call:

• Make sure there is a call from the thermostat
• Make sure no Emergency switches are turned off (including the furnace switch)
• Make sure the breakers for the indoor and outdoor equipment are in the "on" position- reset if necessary
• Make sure the outdoor disconnect is on- some have internal fuses or circuit breakers- if you know how to check fuses you may do so
• If you have a condensate pump with a safety switch, check to see if the pump is completely full of water- If so, make sure pump is plugged-in and hose isn't clogged (could be a bad pump)
• If your outdoor unit has a "Reset Button" press it- if that was the problem and you have to press it a second time, there is a problem and a service call will be needed
• Your unit could have a safety device locking it out. Reset it by turning system off at thermostat or breaker, wait 1 minute and turn back on. Wait up to 10 minutes to see if outdoor unit starts

Hope this helps, remember - these are just rough guidelines and not all possible situations are covered.