Florida summers certainly put plenty of stress on household air conditioning systems. Of course, cooling systems are designed for this, right? They should be able to handle it for 10-15 years before they wear out and require replacement. Well… if you schedule routine maintenance!
Without maintenance, your air conditioner could succumb to wear and tear a lot faster and have more repair needs than average. Even with maintenance, your air conditioner can and still will need the occasional repair. You can avoid the worst of AC troubles though, by knowing what signs to look for that your air conditioner is in disrepair. Read on as we uncover 5 of the top reasons for air conditioning repair issues.
1. Electrical Issues
This is actually the most frequent type of air conditioner malfunction. Loose wiring or faulty relays can cause motors to shut down abruptly, or could lead to a tripped circuit breaker. If your air conditioner’s breaker occasionally trips and needs to be reset—say, once or twice during a summer season—it may not be an issue. But if it is continuously tripping its breaker, be sure to call the pros to investigate what’s going on.
2. Refrigerant Leak
There’s a common misconception among homeowners that air conditioners consume refrigerant like a fuel. This isn’t the case though—the amount of chemical refrigerant ideally stays the same throughout your air conditioner’s lifespan. That’s unless you’re experiencing a refrigerant leak.
When the refrigerant levels drop in an AC system, it creates a domino effect of problems. The biggest issue that can come from this is permanent damage to your compressor. The sooner you call for repairs when you’re AC isn’t working as it should, the more likely you’ll have the problem resolved.
3. Condensate Drain Problem
As your air conditioner runs, it draws moisture from the air, which coalesces as condensate along the evaporator coil of the system. The water drips into a pan, where a condensate drain and pump remove it. This drain can become clogged up, or break loose, causing water to drip out of your indoor unit and into your property.
4. Broken Air Handler
The air handler is the indoor component of your air conditioner that works to push air through the system to be cooled, and then pushes it into the ventilation system. The air handler can fail due to the overheated motor, bent fan blades, or from becoming loose. If the air handler breaks, no air will move into the ventilation system.
5. Failed Capacitor
Capacitors are responsible for sending voltage to the motors of your air conditioner to start it (start capacitors) or to keep it running (run capacitors). The capacitors are the most susceptible components when it comes to overheating, which reduces their ability to hold a charge.
If your AC motors start shutting off early or struggle to turn on, it may be that you need a capacitor replaced. This is a relatively common occurrence that’s easy for our techs to repair but can turn into a very frustrating problem if not managed right away.
Reach out to Kool Breeze of Northwest Florida, Inc. for reliable AC repairs today!