AC Repair in Norristown, PA
Air conditioners here run from June through September. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Montgomery County will get in touch.
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Four months of real heat, then storms to survive
Your air conditioner runs June through September here, with summer afternoons averaging 85°F. That heat puts real load on the compressor and the capacitor, the two parts most likely to give out on the hottest afternoons. The rest of the year the unit sits idle, and idle time lets corrosion and stuck parts set in before the next summer asks anything of it.
Montgomery County has also logged 351 damaging wind events and 59 hail events over the past ten years, with hail up to 1.75 inches. Wind can bend the fins on your outdoor unit, and hail that size can dent the cabinet or flatten fins enough to cut down airflow. If your air conditioner is blowing warm or struggling to keep up after a storm, the outdoor unit is worth a look.
- 4 months
- June through September, your air conditioner is on duty
- 85°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 59 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 351 wind events
- in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new air conditioner would save little on running costs in Montgomery County, so the repair decision comes down to the unit's condition.
Estimates for a typical Montgomery County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Pennsylvania fuel prices and NOAA climate normals. Your home will differ.
Repair makes sense when a part like a capacitor or contactor has failed.
Replacement makes sense when the compressor has failed or the system uses R-22 refrigerant, which is no longer made.
Pennsylvania requires contractors to register with the state.
That registration puts the business on file with the Bureau of Consumer Protection. It does not mean anyone tested the contractor's trade knowledge, and Pennsylvania does not issue a trade license for it. Montgomery County cannot layer its own HVAC license on top of that, since state law keeps that rule with the state.
For a repair like this, the protection that actually applies comes from federal law, not the state registration. Your air conditioner runs on refrigerant, and anyone who opens that side of the system has to hold EPA Section 608 certification, in Pennsylvania or any other state. That certification is what says a technician was tested on handling refrigerant safely. The business registration and the federal certification are two different things, and here, the certification is the one tied to the actual work being done on your system.
Source: Pennsylvania General Assembly
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- The most common reason is a dirty air filter choking off airflow across the coil, which can cause it to freeze up and send warm air through the vents. Low refrigerant from a leak is another common cause, and it will not fix itself since your AC does not use up refrigerant over time. Check the filter first. If it is clean and the air is still warm, the coil may be frozen or the system may be low on refrigerant, and a contractor will need to find the actual cause.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Most often the condensate drain line is clogged, so the water your AC normally pulls out of the air has nowhere to go and backs up into the house. A dirty air filter can also cause this by making the coil freeze, and then drip water everywhere once it thaws. Turn the system off so it stops adding water to the problem. A contractor can clear the line or find the cause if it is something else.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat. Check that it is set to cool and set below the room temperature, and that its batteries are not dead. If the thermostat looks right, check your breaker panel, since a tripped breaker will keep the whole system from starting. If the breaker keeps tripping once you reset it, that points to a problem inside the unit, and you should have a contractor look at it rather than keep resetting it.