AC Repair in Lake Havasu City, AZ
Air conditioners here run from May through September. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Mohave County will get in touch.
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Five months of triple-digit heat wears an AC down fast
Your air conditioner in Lake Havasu City works from May through September, and on a 96°F afternoon it doesn't get a break between cycles. The compressor runs long and hard just to hold the house at a normal temperature, and that heat load is what wears out capacitors and pushes refrigerant pressures higher than they run in milder places. When a capacitor gives out, the compressor can't start, and you'll hear the unit hum or click outside and then go quiet.
The hail and wind that come through here add another way for a system to fail. Ten years of storm records show 22 hail events and 149 damaging wind events, and either one can bend the thin fins on your outdoor coil or knock debris into the fan. Bent fins block airflow across the coil, and a blocked coil means the system works harder to move less heat, right when you need it most.
- 5 months
- May through September, your air conditioner is on duty
- 96°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 22 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 149 wind events
- in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new air conditioner would cut about $60 a year off cooling for a typical Mohave County home.
Estimates for a typical Mohave County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Arizona 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.
Arizona requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The Registrar of Contractors tests and records the contractor, not the crew member who shows up or the specific repair being made. Once a contractor holds that license, it applies to the business across every job it takes on, so the state's check happened before your air conditioner ever came up.
On a repair like this, the part that actually gets checked job by job is the refrigerant work itself. Anyone who opens the sealed side of your system to touch refrigerant has to hold EPA Section 608 certification, a federal requirement that applies no matter what state you're in. So between the two, you've got the contractor's license backing the business and the 608 card backing the person with their hands on the refrigerant.
Sources: Arizona State Legislature · Arizona Registrar of Contractors
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- The most common reason is a dirty air filter choking off airflow across the coil. When that happens the coil can freeze up and the air coming through the vents turns weak and warm instead of cold. Low refrigerant from a leak causes the same thing, and so does a failing compressor. With summer afternoons here running around 96°F, a system fighting any of these problems will struggle to keep up, so it is worth having a contractor check the filter, the coil, and the refrigerant charge.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Your AC makes water as it cools the air, and that water normally drains outside through a condensate line. If the leak is inside the house, that drain line is probably clogged or the drain pan has rusted through. A frozen coil can also cause a flood once it thaws, usually because airflow was blocked by a dirty filter. A contractor can clear the line or replace the pan, but if you see water pooling indoors it is worth shutting the system off until it is checked.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat. Check that it has power, is set to cool, and the temperature is actually below room temperature. If the thermostat looks fine, the problem is likely a tripped breaker or a blown fuse at the outdoor unit, especially after one of the wind events that come through here. A capacitor or contactor failure inside the unit will also keep it from starting, and that needs a contractor to test and replace.