AC Maintenance in New Orleans, LA
Air conditioners here run from April through October, so March is the time for a tune-up. Tell us about your system, and a licensed contractor who covers Orleans Parish will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Seven months of New Orleans heat wears on your air conditioner
Your air conditioner runs from April through October here, with summer afternoons averaging 90°F. That is seven months of the compressor cycling on and off most days, not a few weeks of hard use followed by a long rest. Parts that carry that load, the capacitor and the contactor, wear down under it.
A tune-up catches what that kind of run time does before it leaves you without cooling. Caught early, a weak capacitor is a small fix. Caught late, it takes the compressor down with it.
- 7 months
- April through October, your air conditioner is on duty
- 90°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 6 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 35 wind events
- in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
Book your AC tune-up in March, before homes here start needing cooling in April.
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
A tune-up checks the refrigerant charge, cleans the coils, tests the capacitor and tightens the electrical connections.
Louisiana requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The license is held by the contractor, not issued job by job, so it covers whoever is signed up to work on your account, but the state tested that contractor and keeps a record of them before they ever touch your air conditioner.
For a maintenance visit that means the person coming out has passed the Louisiana State Licensing Board's requirements before they get near your unit. If the technician opens the refrigerant side of your system to check the charge or look for a leak, federal law also requires them to hold EPA Section 608 certification, which is separate from the state license and applies to every technician doing that kind of work anywhere in the country.
Source: Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors
- What does AC maintenance include?
- A technician checks refrigerant levels, cleans the condenser coil, tests the capacitor, and clears the condensate drain. They also check the filter and inspect the electrical connections for wear. Any technician working on the refrigerant side has to hold EPA Section 608 certification, so this isn't a job for a general handyman. In New Orleans, where the system runs from April through October, the coil in particular tends to pick up dirt and pollen that cuts down on airflow if it's never cleaned.
- How often does an air conditioner need maintenance?
- Once a year, ideally in spring before the heat sets in. Homes here need cooling for 7 months, April through October, with summer afternoons averaging 90°F, so the system gets far more run time than it would somewhere with a shorter cooling season. That kind of use wears on the coil and the capacitor faster, which is the reason to get ahead of it before the first hot stretch.
- Is AC maintenance worth it?
- Yes, because a system that runs 7 months a year in 90°F heat is working harder than most, and small problems on a unit like that get worse fast if nobody catches them. Maintenance is also when a contractor finds the wiring or components that took a hit from a storm. This area has seen 35 damaging wind events and 6 hail events over the past ten years, with hail up to 1.75 inches, and that kind of weather can loosen connections or dent a condenser without it being obvious from the ground.