So now it’s the hottest weather of the year - so far - and your air conditioner has decided to stop working.

Crap.

I will assume you have already called your heating and cooling company to get on their list for repairs. Obviously in this weather their list is long and so are the wait times.

But I get it, you are hot now. I’ve gone over this before, like when you were hot before, but this information never gets old…

Here are three things you can do yourself that might jumpstart that air conditioning system and cool you down.

A - Check your equipment room. It’s possible you, or someone like you, turned off your entire system by accident. Yes, it could be that easy. Near your system is an On/Off switch that looks like a light switch. Generally, up is on and down is off. It is possible, and I have done it, that you or someone is leaving that area and absentmindedly just flipped the switch off. Just flip it back on and your system should roar back to life. Enjoy the cool breeze.

2 - Check your thermostat. Yes, it could be that easy. It could have been bumped, or accidentally turned off, or turned to ‘heat’. Or the batteries may be dead. When the batteries in your thermostat die, the thermostat shuts down, and everything that is routed through that thermostat is also shut down, things like your furnace. Things like your air conditioner.

This is an easy fix. Carefully remove the cover on your thermostat. You will see three or four AA batteries. Remove them. Install fresh ones. Put the cover back on and your a/c should crank right off like nothing was ever wrong. Enjoy the cool breeze.

D - Check your furnace filter. Yes, it could be that easy. If your filter hasn’t been changed in a while (a year? two years? ever?) it will eventually become clogged with yuck. When a filter has so much yuck in it that it won’t allow air to pass through anymore it will cause everything to shut down. Things like your furnace. Things like your air conditioner.

This is an easy fix. Carefully remove the filter (located by your furnace in your basement or crawlspace or attic) and replace it with a new one. New ones can be purchased at any big box store, or in many cases at your local grocery store. Check the size, buy one the same size (less than $10) and slide it in. Once you close the door to the filter your system should crank right off like nothing was ever wrong. Enjoy the cool breeze.

What? You can’t find a filter or you don’t have time to run into town to get a new one? As a super stop-gap measure take the old one outside and hit it up against a tree or your fence or your washing machine - whatever you have out there. Gently try to knock some of the yuck out, then replace it (the filter, not the yuck). Hopefully this will buy you a little time so you can get to the store.

If any of these simple fixes makes your system blow cool air don’t call your HVAC company to cancel. You still need them to come out and do a little maintenance on your system. If it’s been so long that your batteries have died in your thermostat (they should replace them with each service call) or that your filter is clogged (they replace those at every service call too) then it’s time for your system to get the once over.

Good luck and stay cool.

Ps... The same ideas will work in the winter when your furnace stops working and it’s 30 degrees outside...