AC Repair in Reading, PA
Air conditioners here run from June through August. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Berks County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Three months of hard running, every year
Your air conditioner in Reading gets three months of real work, June through August, with summer afternoons averaging 83°F. That is a short season, but a hard one. The compressor runs long hours to keep up, and the strain shows up right when you need the house cool.
Berks County has also seen 478 damaging wind events and 58 hail events over the past ten years, with hailstones up to 2 inches. Wind can knock the outdoor unit's cabinet or fins out of shape, and hail dents the coil fins that let the unit shed heat. When the coil is bent up like that, the system has to work harder to cool the same air, and you notice it as warm air at the vents or a unit that runs and runs without catching up.
- 3 months
- June through August, your air conditioner is on duty
- 83°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 58 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 478 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 Berks County, so the repair decision comes down to the unit's condition.
Estimates for a typical Berks 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. Nobody tested this contractor on refrigerant work, wiring, or how an air conditioner is supposed to run. The state also keeps cities and towns from layering their own HVAC license on top, so this registration is the only state-level record that exists here.
For a repair on your air conditioner, the protection that matters is federal. Anyone who opens the refrigerant side of your system, to check the charge or fix a leak, has to hold EPA Section 608 certification, in Pennsylvania or any other state. That's the credential tied to the actual work being done on your unit.
Source: Pennsylvania General Assembly
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- The most common cause is a dirty air filter choking off airflow, so start there before anything else. A clogged filter starves the evaporator coil of air, and the coil can ice over, which leaves you with warm air or almost no airflow at all. Low refrigerant from a leak is another common cause, and that one needs a contractor, since refrigerant has to be recovered and the leak found and sealed. If the filter looks clean and air is still warm, have a contractor check the refrigerant charge and the coil.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Most of the time this means the condensate drain line is clogged. Your AC pulls moisture out of the air as it cools it, and that water is supposed to run out through a drain line to the outside. Algae and dirt build up inside that line over time and block it, so the water backs up and drips inside instead. A frozen evaporator coil that then thaws can also flood the drain pan faster than it can drain, so if you see ice on the coil, shut the system off and let it thaw before calling anyone.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Check the thermostat first. Make sure it is set to cool and set below the room temperature, and check that it has power or fresh batteries if it uses them. If the thermostat looks right, check your breaker panel, since a tripped breaker will cut power to the outdoor unit. If the breaker keeps tripping when you reset it, stop and call a contractor, since that usually points to an electrical fault in the system rather than something you can fix by resetting it again.