We just bought a huge house and moved in last December. I know the heater works (since we had several sub zero days and may $800 heating bills). Now the time has come that we actually need to cool this place off, but appears we are in bad shape.

I have set the temp to as low as 60 degrees for a whole day but only a small amount of cold air comes through. The outside unit is working, though it sounds kind of loud. I have not owned a house before so I have nothing to compare it to.

The thermostat flashed up something about a filter, so I am not sure if that would cause the lack of cold air flowing through.

Can I remove the filter for a couple hours to cool this place down, and to see if that's the problem?

Again, a small amount of cold (not REALLY cold) air comes through and it never seems to lower the overall house temperature.

Also, should I have to pay just to find out what the actually problem is or do companies generally offer a free assessment?

Thanks in advance!!

You will have to pay at least for a service call and minimum charge.
You can try and remove the filter and see if it is dirty and blocking the air flow but I do not recommend running the unit without a filter for more than a day or two.
Since you just bought the house it might be smart to have your system checked out by a professional. Who knows how long it has been since its last service.

I appreciate it. It has a lengthy service log attached to it dating back to 1999, when the house was built. The outside unit is a 4 foot tall Carrier. It is blowing cold air (outside) and there is air blowing between the space where the filter is.

How many hours should it take to make a difference?

Do people typically do anything in the winter to turn off part of the air conditioner that I might need to undo or correct to use the unit?

If the unit outside is blowing cold air it is not running correctly. Just because the fan spins does not mean the compressor is running. Sounds like you will need to call for service.

Thanks. I also just noticed this Water Panel Evaporator thing seems to be extremely full and may be blocking the airflow to my house. Is that possible?

So outside the fan on top should blow out hot air?

If the unit outside is blowing cold air it is not running correctly. Just because the fan spins does not mean the compressor is running. Sounds like you will need to call for service.

Will definitely call for service.

Is carrier a good brand to keep?

Also I just want to double check a couple things. Could any codl water pipes be shut off that run to the air conditioner? Probably not how it works anyway... also we have been out of salt for the water softener for a few days.

Just shooting from the hip.

Thanks!

If you just bought the house, perhaps the first thing you should do check with the Realtor you bought the house through or the lawyer that you had a closing. The seller is obligated to have major systems like the A/C in working condition. I think they have the option of choosing the service person. Might check the real estate law forum.

That will not work in Ohio. If you do not have a private inspection done you have NO recourse to the seller. I hear about people calling there lawyers all the time and all they do is spend money on the lawyer and still have to pay to get it fixed. Now if it is a new home the builder will provide a warranty depending upon your agreement on purchase. A new home does not have to come with a warranty by law but most of them have one year.

Save yourself some time and hours of worry, pick out a good company, that does not have to mean a BIG company, to come out and give you a rundown on what might be wrong with your unit, it could be a dirty filter or a bad compressor but at least you will know and can quit worrying about if. If you are paying $800 a month for heating a small service call from an AC tech will be cheap, he might even save about half of the heating cost for next year. And if you have that large of a house you might have more than one cooling system.