If you discover a leak in a car tire, you go to a mechanic or a tire shop, right? How about a pipe leak? You’d call a plumber. So, what about when you have a refrigerant leak?
The thing is, many homeowners think that it’s okay to lose refrigerant—that it’s something that comes natural with the operation of their heat pump or air conditioning system. But in actuality, losing refrigerant is just as detrimental, if not more so, to your air conditioner as losing air in a car tire is to your vehicle.
If you suspect your air conditioner is losing refrigerant, rather than just ignoring it, we urge you to call our pros right away. We’ve given a rundown of why, below.
Perhaps you’ve already heard of the many benefits of ductless systems. How they are year-round systems that are highly efficient, saving energy and money. How the reverse flow of refrigerant allows them to be efficient air conditioners as well as very effective heaters, depending on the time of year.
Without the right equipment and know-how, it can be hard to detect a plumbing problem. Most of your plumbing system, after all, is hidden from view, and the problems that occur start off subtly. This is a huge part of the reason we recommend scheduling preventing maintenance at least once a year.
Okay, so Fall just started—why are we already talking about winter? Well, because this subject is important, and the further ahead you can plan, the better! Once temperatures drop to a point where they can easily reach below freezing, your pipes are susceptible to problems. Sure, this doesn’t seem like a problem right now, but if you’re in the middle of January and all of the sudden find yourself with a plumbing disaster by way of a burst pipe, it would be unfortunate that you could have taken precautionary measures.
Did you know the end of summer is the most likely time for your air conditioner to develop a problem? After all, it’s placed under a lot more stress than at other times of the year, and the additional wear and tear makes it more likely for various parts to break down.
Perhaps you’ve experienced this “hard-starting” scenario on a chilly winter morning at some point—the engine grinds, but it takes a few times before it turns over when you try to start it. Hard-starting can actually happen to any type of equipment that uses motors, no matter if it’s powered by electricity, natural gas, or even petroleum.
There’s one air conditioner problem we talk about fairly often, and that’s because its presence means your air conditioner is in serious trouble. That’s short-cycling, when your air conditioner cycles on and off rapidly instead of in regular intervals like it is supposed to. It wears down on your system faster that your air conditioner would normally accumulate wear and tear, and can even be an indication that your new system wasn’t properly sized.
When you need a new air conditioner, shopping in the middle of summer can feel a little hectic. After all, it’s the busiest time of the year for HVAC contractors, and you don’t want to feel rushed into a decision, but you need cooling now. 
First off, let’s define what “working well” means. To you, it may mean that it’s blowing cool air. It’s making you feel “comfortable,” even if you feel the need to crank the thermostat down to 70°F in order to make your living space, well, livable.
Your home’s air conditioning system is a complicated piece of machinery. The majority of homeowners may get the basics of how an air conditioner works, but not all the intricacies involved. Therefore, you may not understand how each of the components work together, and what is “right” and “wrong” with what an inexperienced handyman might tell you about your cooling system.