I have a Janitrol/Goodman outside unit that is approximately 7 years old. I have not had any problems with it at all - heating or cooling. Haven't used it since the last of the cold nights, probably the beginning of April. Tried to get the unit to cool the house a few days ago and it wasn't working. The inside fan will come on but nothing at the outside unit. There is a click heard outside when the thermostat is switched to cool. I do not see any fuses in the unit. There is a circuit board but I do not see any lights on it. I also do not see the contactor closing. Any suggestions and/or is there a way to 'hot wire' the unit to eliminate the thermostat or any other part?

If you have a heat pump the click that you hear when the thermostat is turned on may be the reversing valve energizing. There is a contactor that you should be able to hear also when the thermostat is turned on. The contactor is the control that the electric wires, coming in from the power box, are connected to. If you see it close and nothing happens then you may have a fuse blown of a breaker that has tripped.
There are other things it could be but there is one thing that is the first thing that you should always check and that is to see if the unit has power. First High voltage (240) volts and then check for low voltage (24) volts.

There should be a disconnect outside at the unit. It must be on, and if fused, the fuses must be OK. Force the breaker all the way to off and then back on. Then try it.

To do simple checks like this you do need some tools. A test light, a meter, or a voltage detector might be the best place to start with. I came across the niftiest gadget for trouble shooting, a voltage detector. They work through the insulation of wires. There are several brands. I have a GB Instruments GVD-505A, less than $15 at Home Depot. Touch it to a hot wire, and the end glows red. Find the doodad that lights it on one side, and not the other, and you have the culprit. You do not have to open up housings and expose electrical contacts. You are looking at where your hand is, not where the meter is. Most people are capable of doing repairs and will get it going and not get hurt if they use a little sense. The voltage detector makes it even easier.

If you have power to the line side side of the contactor, and to the coil, it should be closed sending power to the compressor and fan. Work your way back to where you do have power.

If you find the unit has 240 volts at the contactor, it may be a safety switch breaking the control voltage, heat pumps usually have a loss of charge switch. If you are not familiar with electricity you may want to have a pro. Check things out.

Thanks - I will hopefully have all of the suggested tools this evening, check things out and report back.

Well, turned the breaker off and back on and the unit is working! Any explanation why a non-tripped breaker would do this? Better question - nothing to worry about unless it happens again in the near future?

If it keeps running I would say things are OK, you may want to call and get a pro. To check things out just to make sure everything is up to par.

About the breaker that did not looked tripped. The 240 volt breakers are two breakers mounted together in some fashion, when one side breaks it does not trip the other side, in some cases, therefore you may not be able to tell if the breaker is thrown or not. So if you ever suspect always trip the breaker all the way off and then back to the on position.

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What if the unit ain't working after you turn the breaker off then on. The breaker has been tripped.