Ice on AC coils in Fresno, CA typically indicates an issue with your air conditioner that needs attention. You might think at first that ice isn’t a big deal—it just means that the AC is working hard. But ice is not part of the cooling cycle of an air conditioner. We’ll explain below why ice may appear on your air conditioning system’s evaporator coil and what to do about it and prevent it.
A common problem people encounter with air conditioning systems during hot weather is when the AC is running, but not all of the house receives an even distribution of cooling. There will always be some fluctuations in temperature throughout a house because of factors like lower insulation and radiant heat exposure. But a professionally installed air conditioner should make these minor. If professionals accurately sized the air conditioner for the home when it was installed, the AC should deliver the necessary comfort to all areas connected to the ventilation system.
What can cause an AC to struggle to provide even cooling? We’ll look at several possible causes and help you understand when you need air conditioning repair—or maybe even a full system replacement. When you’re searching for “AC repair or air conditioning installation near me,” Purl’s is the first company to call.
Homeowners sometimes look at the louvers on the air vents in the rooms around their house and think, “Can’t I just shut that vent so no cool air is sent into this room? That at least means I’m not wasting extra money cooling it.”
This isn’t how vent covers or your air conditioning system works. In fact, shutting room vents can create much worse problems that may lead to you needing to call us for air conditioning repair in Fresno, CA. There are other ways you can save money with your air conditioning system, as well as ways to limit cooling to rooms.
It can be awful to have an air conditioner working away during the day, running almost constantly, and still have a house that’s too stuffy and hot. If you’re currently having this trouble, you may need the assistance of a licensed HVAC contractor. Our repair professionals will see that your cooling system receives the assistance necessary to work its best with our skilled air conditioning repairs in Fresno, CA.
Below are some possibilities for why your AC may not be keeping up with the summer heat.
We’ve written before about the problem of a short-cycling air conditioner, which is when an AC stops its cooling cycle (which usually lasts 15–20 minutes) earlier than normal, then continues to turn on and off rapidly. This is a serious problem that often requires calling for repairs.
There is the opposite version of this problem—an air conditioner that runs for far too long. When an air conditioner spends more than 30 minutes on its cooling cycle, or won’t stop cooling at all, it’s a huge waste of energy and will make the house too cold.
There are several reasons you may start to see this “nonstop AC” problem in your home. You can count on our technicians to find out the exact problem and have it fixed.
Did you remember to have AC maintenance in Fresno, CA in the spring? If you did, then you gave your air conditioning system the best beginning to the summer. (If you didn’t … it’s not too late to schedule it!) But as wonderful as maintenance is, it can’t prevent all air conditioning problems or stop an AC from eventually wearing down.
As we move toward the fall, we recommend you think about your air conditioner’s performance over this last summer, especially if the system is more than 10 years old. If your air conditioning system is showing signs it needs repairs or it’s ready for retirement, have the service done as soon as possible. (Fall is a good time to replace older air conditioners because HVAC technicians have more open schedules.)
Let’s go through a few basic air conditioning considerations to see how well your cooling system held up.
An air conditioning system runs in cycles where the compressor turns on to provide cooling for the house, then shuts down until the thermostat registers it needs to turn back on. These cooling cycles should last at least fifteen minutes.
If you notice your AC shuts down after only a short time, then turns on again soon after, it’s short-cycling. This malfunction makes it hard for the air conditioner to fully cool a house. It also wastes energy (compressor start-up draws on large amounts of electricity) and wears down the AC components rapidly. Below we’ve listed five frequent causes of this problem.
A mistake that homeowners often make about the way their air conditioning systems work is to assume that ice appearing along the indoor evaporator coil is normal, just a sign the AC is working extremely well at cooling down the air.
The truth is that ice should never appear on any part of an air conditioner. When ice appears along the evaporator coil, it means something is interfering with the standard way the air conditioner operates. The ice creates a major problem on its own, but the source of the ice forming may be an even worse problem.
An air conditioning system that won’t turn on is obviously a major problem. But an air conditioning system that continues to run and run without cycling down is almost as big a problem. A nonstop air conditioner will waste massive amounts of energy, make parts of the house too cold, and wear down the unit rapidly so it needs multiple repairs and an early replacement.
What has turned your AC system into a runaway train? We’ll examine several potential causes below. You shouldn’t attempt to diagnose the problem on your own, however. You’ll need an expert HVAC contractor in Fresno, CA to figure out what’s wrong and how best to fix it.
When you’re looking for a new air conditioning system installation in Fresno, CA, you’ll have many questions about cooling power, energy efficiency, and cost. There’s plenty to consider when planning for a new cooling system, and you want to make sure you get the right air conditioner. We recommend you work with our professionals from the start so we can answer your questions and ensure you have a properly sized new AC.
The question of what “Puron” is and how it’s different from Freon we can answer here. The word “Freon” tends to get tossed around interchangeably, leading to confusion about refrigerants. We’re happy to clear things up.
