An air conditioning system is expensive, so you want yours to last a long time. It's worth the investment to maintain and repair your equipment so you can prolong the life of your AC. Some parts of an air conditioner are inexpensive and the repairs are affordable. Other parts are costly and lead to the need for major repairs. Here are some major air conditioning system repairs you might need and how to prevent them when possible.
1. Replace A Burned-Out Compressor
The compressor is an expensive and major part of your AC. It's in the condenser outside where it is vulnerable to intense heat. It's important to keep the condenser clean and free from debris and functioning properly so there is no strain on the compressor.
The compressor can strain and burn out if the capacitor goes bad and is unable to give the compressor the boost of power it needs to start up. Another thing that strains the compressor is when the condenser fan stops working and heat builds up inside the condenser cage. The purpose of the fan is to blow heat out of the cage so the parts stay as cool as possible.
You might be alerted to these problems when your condenser makes odd noises when the AC tries to start. If so, call an air conditioning repair service for advice, so you can get help before the compressor is damaged.
2. Repair A Refrigerant Leak
Another major air conditioning system repair you might need to have done is repairing a problem with the refrigerant. A loss of refrigerant keeps your AC from blowing air as cool as it should be. When refrigerant is low, that usually means there's a leak somewhere. Finding the leak, repairing it, replacing a bad coil, and filling the refrigerant becomes an expensive repair.
To reduce the risk of a leak inside the air handler on the evaporator coil, be conscious of the products you use in your home that give off VOCs (volatile organic compounds). These gases can cause corrosion and pitting on copper refrigerant lines in your evaporator coil. This could cause the need for an entirely new coil.
Other times, fittings may vibrate loose and cause a leak. These can be caught during an annual inspection so the connection can be tightened before you lose a lot of refrigerant. You can protect the refrigerant line that's outside by being careful when you work around the AC to do digging or other activities that could nick or break the copper refrigerant line.
3. Replace The Ducts
Ducts are an essential and expensive part of an air conditioning system. You may never need to replace them if the repair technician can patch them when problems arise. However, if the ducts grow mold or if they were invaded and damaged by raccoons in your attic, you could need to replace part of all of the ducts.
Taking care of your roof and attic is a good way to protect your ducts. Have your roof repaired when it's leaking so mold doesn't grow in your attic. Also, close holes in fascia boards and your roof so destructive animals and birds can't get inside and tear up your ducts.
Contact a local HVAC service to learn more about air conditioning repair.
Share11 November 2022
Hi there, my name is Shelley. Welcome to my site about electric heating systems. Electric heat has recently fallen out of favor due to the efficiency of natural gas systems. Electric heat is still suitable for small buildings that do not need the high temps provided by upgraded systems. I will use this site to explore all of the building types that can benefit from electric heating systems. I will also share information about system components, installations and repairs. I welcome you to come by often to learn more about this exciting topic. Thanks for coming by. See you soon.