Category: AC Repair

The Most Common Problems Requiring Air Conditioner Repair in St. Louis, MO

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Now that we’re preparing to enter the hottest part of the year, the last thing you want to have happen is an air conditioner breakdown. Unfortunately, air conditioners tend to break down right at the worst possible times, when the heat and humidity are unbearable, largely because that’s the time of year that places the greatest strain on them.

You can avoid many of the more expensive and involved forms of air conditioner repair simply by keeping up with preventative maintenance. However, there are some problems that will force you to call a professional to come and provide you with air conditioner repair in St. Louis, MO. Here are a few of those most common issues:

  • Bad wiring: Bad wiring is usually a problem with installation. Shoddy wiring is often the result of using uncertified installation professionals to set up your air conditioning, and can be hazardous if left unresolved for long periods of time. In certain circumstances, it could cause fires to break out in your system, but at the very least it will prevent the system from running smoothly, possibly causing power to go in and out or your circuit breaker to regularly trip. The wiring might have other issues that have caused it to wear down over time.
  • Outside fan not spinning: The outside fan takes the heat from inside your home and pushes it outside. If the fan isn’t spinning properly or otherwise working, you won’t get the heat transfer that is so important in cooling your home. This could cause the compressor in your air conditioning unit to overheat and cause the safety feature to trip. There’s also the chance it could cause some expensive damage to your compressor. So if you experience problems with the fan in the outside unit not working properly, you should have a service professional take a look at the unit as soon as possible.
  • Low refrigerant: The Freon refrigerant in your unit cools the air inside your air conditioning system. Lower levels of refrigerant could potentially indicate there’s a leak in the system, or some other problem to address. If you need to replace your refrigerant regularly, the leak issue becomes even more likely. You should have a service professional come and find the leak and repair it immediately.
  • The coil freezes: Frozen coils in an air conditioning unit usually indicate there’s an issue with the airflow, such as problems with clogged air filters or buildups of debris in the return air ducts. There’s also a chance it could be a sign of low refrigerant, but you should check the other issues first.
  • House not getting cool: There are many issues that could cause your air conditioning to simply not work properly or efficiently, so to figure out the root cause, you’ll need to have a technician come and look over the system.

For more information about the most common air conditioner problems and when you need air conditioner repair in St. Louis, MO, contact Ashley Brothers Heating & Cooling today.

Why Is an Air Conditioner’s Capacity Measured in Tons?

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When we visit our customers for AC repair in St. Louis, MO it often confuses them to hear us refer to their air conditioner’s capacity using the word “tons.” They’ll look at a three-ton unit and say in disbelief, “That thing really weighs three tons?”

If the word “ton” here referred to weight, a three-ton AC would be too big for your back yard. Luckily it is not referring to weight at all, but rather to a measurement of how much heat it can remove from your house.

Answering this question is going to be fun, because it requires taking a little bit of a peek back in time.

The answer

The first thing to know is that people used to use ice to cool homes and refrigerate foods, and the measurement of an AC unit’s heat-removing capacity reflects this. A three-ton AC removes heat at a rate that a three-ton block of ice would, if it removed heat evenly and melted completely across 24 hours. Confusing? Here’s a simpler way to think about it. A three-ton AC unit is like putting a 6,000-pound block of ice in your home every day. Just without the mess, of course.

It may seem strange that ACs are measured using such an abstract standard, but it’s not strange at all when you think about how the power of other modern machines are measured. Just think about a car’s horsepower. ACs are more or less measured in ice power. So with both machines, their power is explained in terms of the things they were replacing: blocks of ice for the AC, and horse-drawn carriages for the cars.

The math

Here’s how that translates into math. A one-ton block of ice melting evenly across 24 hours would absorb heat at a rate of about 12,000 BTU/hour—one BTU can be understood as being about the same amount of heat caused by burning one match all the way down. So if you have a three-ton unit, it removes about 36,000 BTUs of heat from your home per hour, and about 864,000 BTUs per day. The heat of one match might not seem like much—but now picture the heat of 864,000 matches. Your AC unit’s pretty amazing, isn’t it?

The bottom line

What would your ancestors—after returning home from the market on their horse-drawn carriage, chipping new ice for their rooms, hour after hour, just trying to stay bearably cool—say if they could step into your home and enjoy the effortless cool that your AC provides, knowing it does not require moving three tons of ice into the house, bit by bit, in order to enjoy that cool feeling? They’d probably say, “Are you kidding me?” and then beg you to switch places. What do you think?

We hope you enjoyed this little history lesson. We know we really enjoyed answering your question! If you’ve got more questions, give us a call here at Ashley Brothers Heating & Cooling. We’re experts in AC repair in St. Louis, MO, and we’ve got the knowledge and expertise to get the job done right.

Three Reasons to Call Us for AC Repair in St. Louis, MO Sooner Rather Than Later

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Although it’s certainly not the case for everyone, it seems like a lot of our customers wait a while before they call us for AC repair in St. Louis, MO. For one reason or another, people seem to think it’s okay to wait for repairs. This is especially true if it’s not too hot outside and a ceiling fan is keeping them cool enough. Here are a few reasons to call us as soon as your AC breaks, or if it shows signs that it’s about to fail:

The best way to avoid the need for AC repair in St. Louis, MO this summer is by calling us to perform general maintenance on your unit sometime within the next few weeks. Our certified technicians can clean, tune up and check every aspect of your air conditioner to ensure that it’s running correctly and efficiently all summer long.

If your AC system happens to run into trouble sometime this year, be sure to call Ashley Brothers Heating & Cooling as soon as possible. Our fast, reliable and affordable service has made us the area’s number one choice for air conditioner repair for nearly 20 years, and we look forward to helping you soon.