AC Repair in Tucson, AZ
Air conditioners here run from April through October. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Pima County will get in touch.
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Seven months of 99 degree afternoons wears an AC down
Your air conditioner runs from April through October here, seven months a year. On afternoons that average 99°F, it is not cycling on and off like it would somewhere milder. It is running long stretches just to hold the temperature, and the compressor and the fan motor take that load every one of those days.
That kind of run time adds up on the capacitor first. It is the part that gives the compressor and fan motors the jolt they need to start, and heat is what wears it out. When it goes, the outdoor unit hums but the fan does not turn, or the compressor tries to start and cannot. You will notice it as a system that runs but stops cooling, or one that will not start at all on the hottest part of the day.
- 7 months
- April through October, your air conditioner is on duty
- 99°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 54 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 277 wind events
- in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new air conditioner would cut about $90 a year off cooling for a typical Pima County home.
Estimates for a typical Pima 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 state tested this contractor before handing out the license, and the Registrar of Contractors keeps a record of who holds one. That license belongs to the contracting business, not to the individual job, so it stands behind every repair that business takes on, including yours.
Because this job means opening the refrigerant side of your air conditioner, whoever does the work also has to hold EPA Section 608 certification, the same federal rule that applies in every state. That certification is separate from the Arizona license. One says the contractor is registered and accountable in this state. The other says the technician is trained to handle refrigerant without venting it into the air.
Sources: Arizona State Legislature · Arizona Registrar of Contractors
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- Most of the time it's a dirty air filter choking off airflow, or the outdoor unit is low on refrigerant and needs a licensed contractor to find the leak. Check the filter first since a clogged one can freeze the coil and cut cooling to nothing. If the filter looks fine and the air is still warm, the compressor outside may not be running, and that needs a trained eye. With afternoons here hitting 99°F all summer, even a small drop in cooling capacity gets noticed fast.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Water on the floor near your indoor unit usually means the condensate drain line is clogged. As your AC pulls moisture out of the air, that water is supposed to run out through the drain, and algae or dirt can block it over time. A clogged filter can also cause this by freezing the coil, which then drips as it thaws. If the pan under the unit is cracked or rusted, that's a repair a contractor needs to look at directly.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat. Make sure it's set to cool and the temperature is below the room temperature, and check that its batteries aren't dead. If the thermostat looks right, check your breaker panel, since a tripped breaker will shut the whole system down. When neither of those is the problem, the issue is likely inside the unit itself, in the capacitor or the control board, and that calls for a licensed HVAC contractor to diagnose.