Air Conditioner Repair near you

Many no-cooling calls turn out to be a setting, a switch or a dirty filter. The checks below need no tools and no contact with electrical or refrigerant parts. Don't open the outdoor unit's panels, don't touch the capacitor, which can hold a dangerous charge even with the power off, and never try to add refrigerant yourself.

The technician asks what you noticed, then checks the thermostat signal, the power supply and the electrical components in the outdoor unit, such as the capacitor and the contactor, which fail often. They measure the system's pressures and temperatures, check the airflow across the indoor coil and inspect the condensate drain, the drain pan and any condensate pump.

Low refrigerant always means a leak somewhere, because an air conditioner doesn't use its refrigerant up. A certified technician should find and repair the leak, recover any refrigerant that has to come out and recharge the system to the manufacturer's specification, rather than topping it up and leaving. Ask for the diagnosis in writing, including which part failed and whether refrigerant was added.

Most air conditioner failures are uncomfortable rather than dangerous, but a few call for switching the system off right away. A burning or electrical smell, smoke, sparks at the outdoor unit or a breaker that trips as soon as you reset it point to an electrical fault. Turn the system off at the thermostat and the breaker, then call a technician, or the fire department if you see smoke or flames.

Water coming through a ceiling under an attic air handler or a ductless unit also needs quick action. Shut the system off, catch the water and move your belongings, then have the drain line, the drain pan and any condensate pump checked. During a heat wave, tell the company when you call if someone at home is elderly, very young or has a health condition.

A lot of repair calls could be avoided with a careful spring start-up. Remove any winter cover, look for damage from falling ice or snow without trying to straighten anything yourself, and clear away leaves and debris that collected over the winter. Some manufacturers ask that power be restored to the outdoor unit several hours before the first start so the compressor is warm, so check the owner's manual.

Test the system on a mild day before the first heat wave, when a technician can still come quickly if something is wrong. If the air conditioner fails during a heat wave anyway, close the blinds on sunny windows, spend the hottest hours in the lowest and coolest room or in a cooled public space, and check on older neighbours and anyone with health problems.

A failed capacitor, contactor or fan motor on an air conditioner that otherwise works well is usually worth repairing. The picture changes when the compressor fails, when a coil leaks again after being repaired, or when the unit runs on an older type of refrigerant; ask the technician whether it is still readily available for your model.