Professional Heating & Air Blog: Posts Tagged ‘Air Conditioning Repair’

Why Is There Frost on My AC Coils?

Monday, April 3rd, 2017

Summer comes earlier and earlier every year, and that means your air conditioner is likely going to be put to the test every day. When trouble arises, you need to be ready for it, and one common sign of trouble is frost or ice forming on the air conditioner’s coils. At first glance, it may not seem like much. After all, aren’t air conditioners supposed to be cold? But in point of fact, frost on the coils represents a significant problem and needs to be addressed by a professional before your air conditioner runs for too much longer.

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Typical HVAC Emergencies

Monday, January 9th, 2017

An HVAC emergency is identified in the most basic terms as a situation that absolutely cannot wait: something taking place after normal work hours in most cases and of a sort that can put off the entire household if it’s allowed to linger. Ideally, every heating and air conditioning problem would take place during the work day, when you’re at home to spot it, or else be of a sort where you can let it sit for a few days until you can schedule a session. Unfortunately, real life doesn’t work like that.

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Common Problems with Old Air Conditioners

Monday, September 12th, 2016

We’ve still go some hot weather to come here in Walker, LA, where summers are long and winters brief. And with months of steady work already under its belt — to say nothing of possible problems caused with recent flooding — you  need to make sure your system is still running the way it should. This is especially the case with older systems, which may be showing more wear and tear than normal, and which are particularly vulnerable to breakdowns this time of year. Spotting a common problem with your old air conditioner can give you a jump on making repairs, and may even prevent a wholesale breakdown. The list of issues can include:

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Leaking Refrigerant Spells Trouble for your AC

Monday, May 23rd, 2016

People often assume that air conditioners consumer refrigerant they way a car consumes oil. That’s not the case. Refrigerant actually is supposed to stay at certain set levels dictated by the make and model of your air conditioner. It cycles through an endless loop within the system, first releasing heat outside of your home, then pulling heat from the air within the unit, which can then be blown into your home with a fan. Leaks aren’t supposed to happen, but unfortunately they do. The good news is there’s steps you can take to address the problem the right way.

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Why Is Low Air Flow in Your AC a Problem?

Monday, August 10th, 2015

If you’ve noticed that your air conditioner is generating plenty of cool air, but that the air flow doesn’t seem to be moving as swiftly as it once did, you might have a serious problem on your hands. We tend to think of air conditioning issues as something solely centered around cooling capacity, but in truth low air flow can be just as troublesome as a lack of cool air. Here in Hammond, LA our summers are too hot and sultry to just leave an issue like that alone. But what causes low air flow? And more importantly, why is low air flow in your AC a problem?

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The Purpose of Refrigerant in Your AC System

Monday, June 29th, 2015

Many homeowners know that air conditioners run on refrigerant: chemicals that facilitate a heat exchange between the air inside your home and the air outside your home. The specific refrigerant depends on the exact model of air conditioner, and you need precise amounts in order to facilitate the process of cooling the air. Here in Hammond, LA, that makes your refrigerant vital to keeping your home cool and comfortable during our sultry Southern summers. It helps a great deal to fully understand the purpose of refrigerant in your AC system, and how that can be affected when it starts to run low.

Recirculated, Not Consumed

Unlike the gas in your car, refrigerant is not consumed by the air conditioner. In fact, it theoretically exists within a closed system, and will never leak at all. It first passes through a condenser array, where heat is pulled from it and a great deal of pressure applied. That shifts the refrigerant to a pressurized liquid state, where it enters the evaporator coils in a set amount. There, it shifts back into a gas, pulling heat from the air around the coils as a result. The cool air is blown into your home and the refrigerant returns to the condenser array.

Trouble Comes from Leaks

As we said, theoretically, the system is never supposed to leak. But leaks can occur for a number of different reasons, and when they do, the balance of the system is thrown off. The refrigerant can’t cool the air as effectively and your system has to work much harder to do its job: increasing the risk of more serious breakdowns in the future.

Luckily, the experts at A Professional Heating & Air Conditioning Services can seal any leak and recharge your refrigerant levels to their optimum state. Pick up the phone and call us today!

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Common Signs of Air Conditioning Trouble

Monday, June 8th, 2015

When your air conditioner breaks down in Hammond, LA, you can feel it immediately. Our summers are too hot and humid to let such incidents pass, and unless you get a trained technician in there quickly, your household will be at the mercy of our stifling temperatures. Only a skilled professional should address an air conditioning repair issue – amateurs might make the problem worse and the presence of potentially toxic refrigerants may pose a safety risk as well – but you can help out by spotting the signs of air conditioning trouble as early as possible. Doing so may help you stop a big problem while it’s still small and save you a great deal of money as well as a day without an air conditioner. Generally speaking, anything out of the ordinary should be reported, but more specifically, look for these signs:

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Why Should I Worry About Short Cycling With My Air Conditioning?

Monday, May 25th, 2015

If you’ve had to deal with air conditioning repair, you may have heard the term “short cycling” before. It’s a condition whereby your unit turns off and on again very quickly, sometimes without adequately cooling the house and often with far more frequency than is proper. This is of especial concern as we gear up for summer here in Hammond, LA, because you’re going to need your air conditioning when the temperatures hit triple digits. Short cycling can be caused by anything from low refrigerant levels to a system that’s too powerful for the space it’s supposed to cool.  But why should you worry about short cycling with your air conditioning?

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How Does My Air Conditioning System Work?

Monday, May 11th, 2015

Air conditioners are one of the unsung heroes of your household, delivering cool comfortable air for a very reasonable price. Summers in Hammond, LA, would be insufferable without them, and yet we rarely pay attention to them until they suffer a breakdown. Anytime there’s trouble with your AC, you should call in a trained professional immediately, but it may help to understand how the system functions on the most basic level. That can help you spot signs of trouble more readily and respond to trouble sooner rather than later. “How does my air conditioning system work?” you ask. We’ve provided a quick outline below.

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Why Your Air Conditioning Systems Has Ice on It

Friday, April 3rd, 2015

Air conditioners are a type of refrigeration system: using the action of a compressor to circulate refrigerant, they remove heat from one location to lower the temperature, and then exhaust the heat elsewhere. You may, at some point, notice ice developing along the inside of your air conditioner. Considering the chilled air coming from the system, this might seem like a normal side-effect of how an AC operates.

However, as we’ll explain below, the development of ice on an air conditioner isn’t something you want to happen. But please don’t try to solve the problem by scraping the ice off. This won’t work! Instead, call A–Professional Heating and Air Conditioning and we’ll help you with the necessary air conditioning repair in Hammond, LA that will restore your system. We are on call 24 hours a day for your convenience.

The Reasons Ice May Develop on Your Air Conditioner

  • Low refrigerant: If the refrigerant lines in your air conditioner develop a leak and permit refrigerant to escape, it will often cause the evaporator coils to ice up. The reason this occurs is that the lower amount of refrigerant in the coils can no longer absorb enough heat to warm itself above freezing. The coils will remain cold and cause water moisture along them to turn to ice. This will further slow heat absorption, causing more ice to grow… and eventually you’ll have a solid block of ice over the AC coils and a system that won’t work at all. Repair technicians will need to seal the refrigerant leaks and restore the proper refrigerant charge for the air conditioner to work again.
  • Dirt and grime along the coils: If contamination has entered the air conditioner’s indoor cabinet, it can cause the coils to become dirty. This will limit their ability to absorb heat through evaporation, and the coils will start to freeze water vapor along their length. You must have professionals detach the coils, defrost them, then clean them.
  • Clogged air filter: An air filter that is too congested with dust and debris to allow sufficient warm air to enter the AC cabinet will cause the evaporator coils to stay too cold. Make sure that you change the filter once a month during the summer season when the air conditioner runs to avoid this problem.

At the first sign of ice on your AC, call for repairs. Our technicians at A–Professional Heating and Air Conditioning are ready around the clock to provide you with the professional air conditioning repair service in Hammond, LA that will find why the ice is appearing and fix it.

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