No cool
What to Check When the Air Conditioner Will Not Turn On
Thermostat, breaker, float switch, and the outdoor disconnect. The four things to look at before an independent AC repair call.
A system that will not start is often a switch, not a dead compressor. Walk the four points before you pay for a diagnostic.
The four points
Thermostat set to cool, batteries if it has them, setpoint lower than the room. The breaker in the panel, including one that looks on but is soft-tripped in the middle. The outdoor disconnect, a small box on the wall by the condenser, pulled or weathered. The condensate float, often a small switch on the drain line, which shuts the outdoor unit off when the pan is full.
If the indoor fan runs and the outdoor unit clicks but the fan does not spin, stop. That can be a capacitor, and it can also be a fan motor about to fail. Do not push the fan blade with a stick.
What to tell the shop
Say which of the four you checked, and whether you hear a click outside. An owner who answers the phone can use that. A dispatch script cannot.
If nothing on this list starts it, find a shop in your city and describe the silence. Do not keep flipping the breaker.
Ready to call a shop? Find independent AC repair by city.