Professional A/C Inspections and Maintenance: Five Things a Good Tech Looks For

Your air conditioner is a summer workhorse, keeping your family cool no matter how harsh and humid the Hudson Valley heat gets. But making sure your A/C is up to the task requires some preparation and TLC – including routine inspections and preventive maintenance to keep your cooling system running at its reliable best.

But what exactly do technicians look for during an inspection and maintenance visit, and why should you not attempt to do tackle these duties on your own?

To answer the second question first, today’s home cooling systems are complex and sophisticated pieces of equipment – as much a computer as they are a mechanical device – and maintaining them requires skilled technicians with the right training and tools to do the job.

As to what an air conditioning technician looks for, it’s a long list! To keep things simple, here are five specific areas that a professional will look for as they examine your home cooling equipment.

• Electrical connections – Moisture and chemicals in the air can cause electrical wiring and connections to corrode, which will eventually cause a cooling system to fail or shut down. Technicians look closely for corrosion, and for any wiring that might have come loose.
• Motors – A dusty or under-lubricated fan or compressor motor can cause overload and burnout; a technician will look for signs that the motors are under stress or strain, including excessive dust, dirt, and grit.
• Refrigerant – If technicians find that the amount of refrigerant in your cooling system has dropped below normal, factory set levels, they will look for leaks in the system. A refrigerant leak is not always easy to find, but it is a critical repair: without it, the compressor is in danger of an expensive failure that may even require replacing the whole AC.
• Blower – The blower is moves air through the coils of the AC and into your ducts. If a blower is dirty or failing, the efficiency of your system will suffer, and less cool air will make it into your living space.
• Thermostat – Your thermostat is the brain of your home cooling system; if it is not working correctly, it can cost you comfort and money. A proper air conditioner inspection will check your thermostat to make sure it is working and calibrated properly.

Spring is the best time to schedule your home cooling system inspection and maintenance. Contact the A/C experts at Black Bear to schedule yours today!