Today there I suddenly got a whiff of a smell I knew was something electrical but didn't realize what it was until I saw my air conditioner wasn't kicking in, it was just on fan mode.

I opened it up and found a wire from the power/speed dial to the thermostat dial had burnt and melted off at the thermostat. I cut the wire and spliced in a new end, and so far after about an hour it seems to be working fine, the connector still cool to the touch.

Is this something I should be worried about? Was it a likely a one-time occurrence and safe to keep using? Can't afford to replace it now and AC is a must for the room ... last few weeks of hot weather.