AC Not Turning On? Three Checks Built From the Makers’ Own Manuals

When the unit, the remote or the display is dead: what Daikin, LG, Samsung, Godrej, Voltas and Blue Star publish, sorted into three branches and tagged by maker.

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The short answer. Work out which part is dead, then run that branch:

1. Nothing at all (no lights, no beep, no response): check the supply first. Daikin, LG, Godrej and Blue Star each list a power cut, the plug or switch, a tripped breaker and the timer.
2. The remote is dead, the unit may not be: batteries, line of sight, a lock, then start the unit from its own button.
3. The display is dark, but the unit may be on: the display can be switched off, and on one Daikin model it stays off after a power cut.

If you just switched it back on, wait first: Daikin, LG, Godrej and Samsung each publish a restart delay of about 3 minutes (table below).

The only repair step on this page is switching a tripped MCB back on. Anything past that goes to the maker’s service (contacts below).

If the indoor unit runs but the outdoor unit stays silent, see AC compressor not turning on. If it runs but isn’t cooling, see AC not cooling.

Why your AC is not turning on: what each maker checks

Each column is that maker’s own “does not operate” list, read 30 September 2026. “Yes” means it appears in at least one of the documents named.

The order below is ours; none of the makers’ documents we read gives one merged list.

The checks, in order

1. Is the power out? LG: “Turn off the appliance when a power failure occurs.” Voltas also says to switch off during power cuts, and to unplug during storms.
2. Plug and switch. LG: “Check whether the power cord is plugged into the outlet or the power isolators are switched on.” Daikin: “Make sure the power cord plug is connected securely to the service outlet.”
3. The MCB. If the AC’s breaker has tripped, switch it back on once. If it trips again, stop. Daikin lists a breaker that “cuts off the operation frequently” among symptoms that mean “call your service centre immediately”. Samsung: “Under size breaker may cause Tripping.” Fuses we leave to an electrician or the maker’s technician (our rule, not a maker’s).
4. The timer. Daikin’s manual says timers must be set again after the circuit breaker has been off, after a power failure and after replacing the remote’s batteries. LG: the Off Timer may have switched the unit off at a preset time.
5. Wait out the restart delay (next table).
6. Still nothing? Go to branch 2 and try the unit’s own button. If that fails too, read the voltage section.

The restart delay: “I switched it back on and nothing happened”

Four makers state about 3 minutes in their own documents. Blue Star’s 2 minutes comes from a manual copy hosted by a seller, not by Blue Star. This page has no Voltas figure. Each delay applies to that maker’s units only.

Branch 2: the remote is dead

Batteries. Daikin and LG specify AAA (LG: 1.5 V). Daikin: “Both batteries should be replaced at the same time.” LG: “Do not use old and new batteries together.” Samsung’s sequence: take the batteries out and “insert them after 30 seconds”, check polarity, then “If still not working, change the batteries.” Blue Star’s FAQ asks whether the batteries are dead or not properly fitted.

Camera test (Samsung only, in our sources). Press any button while photographing the remote’s sending end with a phone camera. Samsung: “If the light is ON, the remote control is normal. Otherwise, it is faulty.”

Line of sight. Daikin: “If there is anything blocking the signals between the unit and the remote controller, such as a curtain, the unit will not operate.” Samsung says a bright light, such as neon, near the unit or remote can jam the signal.

A lock. Voltas’s unlock article: “Press the temperature up (+) and down (-) buttons simultaneously” and hold them for about 3 to 5 seconds; a padlock-type icon on the remote’s screen shows it is locked. Godrej: “Check whether LOCK key is activate or not?”

Reset the remote. Voltas: “To reset your Voltas AC Remote, remove and then reinsert the batteries. In some models, there is a dedicated button to reset the remote.” Godrej, for a unit that stops obeying the remote after frequent function changes: “pull out of the plug, and reinsert it”.

Start the unit without the remote. Daikin’s MTKM50XV16 indoor unit has an ON/OFF switch: “This switch can be used when the remote controller is missing.” LG: open the up-down vane (Type 1) or front cover (Type 2) and press the indoor unit’s Power button. Godrej’s manual lists an “EMERGENCY OPERATION KEY”, but we could not read that page. Our inference, not a maker’s rule: if the unit starts from its own button, the fault is on the remote side; if not, go back to the supply.

Branch 3: the display is dark

• LG: the remote’s Light Off button “Turns the indoor unit display on or off.” (LG marks it “On Some Models”).
• Godrej: for “The indoor display is off”, “Activate DISPLAY key on remote control”.
• Blue Star (seller-hosted manual copy): a button described as “Press to switch ON/OFF IDU Display.”
• Daikin MTKM50XV16: indicator brightness can be set to H, L or OFF, and “if Power failure occurs then when power will resume LED will remain in OFF state (needs to reset LED Brightness Control again)”. On that model, a display that went dark after a power cut may simply be the saved setting.
• Voltas: Amazon lists “Hidden Display” for the 185INV Vertis AI Zest Gold; the Voltas pages we read do not explain it.

Looks off but isn’t: timers and auto-restart

• Daikin ON timer: the unit may start up to an hour early, and using the remote (other than ON/OFF) in that window puts it in stop mode. Daikin: “When this happens, turn on the air conditioner using the remote controller, and set the timer again.”
• After a power cut, Daikin: “The air conditioner automatically resumes operation in about 3 minutes.”
• After a power cut, LG: “If you have the Auto Restart function enabled, your appliance will resume its last operation several minutes after power is restored.” LG documents switching Auto Restart off by holding the indoor unit’s Power button for 6 seconds; with it off, the unit stays off after a power cut. LG is the only maker in our sources that documents that off switch.

Voltage, stabiliser and MCB: each maker’s own figure

Samsung says a stabiliser is needed only where voltage swings beyond the operating limit, and none for models with its S-UTR compressor. Godrej’s cut-out is stated for inverter models; how inverter and fixed-speed units differ is in our inverter vs non-inverter AC comparison.

Stabiliser size, Voltas, 1.5 ton: two answers. Voltas’s installation page lists 4 KVA, and its power-cut blog (7 August 2025) says “at least 4 kVA capacity”. Its stabiliser guide (6 October 2023) says “around 2000 VA or 2 kVA” for a 1.5 ton inverter AC. We do not choose between them; ask Voltas which applies to your model.

MCB rating: the makers differ. For 1.5 ton, Samsung’s MCB-trip article (11 Sep 2025) lists 32 A and Voltas’s installation table 20 A. For 1 ton, Samsung 20 A, Voltas 16 A. Each figure is for that maker’s units. Use the rating in your own model’s manual; changing a breaker is an electrician’s job.

Codes and lamps that point at power

• LG: “If an error occurs, the lamp of the indoor unit will flash in 2-second intervals. If this occurs, contact your local dealer or service centre.” The manual gives no code meanings.
• Godrej (inverter models): “In case of any fault in inverter outdoor unit the operation of air conditioner will get stop immediately and corresponding error will appear on the indoor display.” Its E1 and E2 mean different things in its inverter and fixed-speed tables, so read the one for your model type.
• Blue Star FAQ: checks “Is there any error on the IDU display?” and routes issues to its Authorised Service Centre.
• Daikin’s U2 voltage code and Samsung’s EC code are on our compressor page.

We found no no-power code meanings for Voltas, Blue Star (on its own site) or Panasonic in the pages we read.

When to stop and call service

Daikin, LG and Godrej publish stop-and-call lists in their own documents:

• Hot or damaged cord: Daikin “The power cord is abnormally hot or damaged.” LG “The power cable is damaged or it is generating excessive heat.” Godrej “There is an abnormal heat in power supply cord and power plug.”
• Breaker trouble: Daikin: a breaker, fuse or earth leakage breaker that “cuts off the operation frequently”. LG “A switch, a circuit breaker (safety, ground) or a fuse is not operating properly.” Godrej “Air switch or protection switch often breaks.”
• Burning smell: Daikin “There is a burning smell.” LG “Burning smell and strange sounds are coming from the appliance.”

Daikin: “Turn off the circuit breaker and call your service centre.” LG: “Turn off the appliance, switch off or disconnect the power supply, and contact the service centre.” Daikin also says: “Do not attempt to repair or modify the air conditioner by yourself.”

What we could not verify

• A general reset-button procedure for the indoor unit, from any maker.
• No-power code meanings for LG, Voltas, Blue Star (own site) and Panasonic.
• Voltas’s restart delay.
• A service-visit charge for a no-power fault: we did not source one for this page.