AC Repair in Breaux Bridge, LA
Air conditioners here run from April through October. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers St. Martin Parish will get in touch.
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Seven months of heat, and storms on top of it
Your AC runs April through October here, seven months of the year, with summer afternoons averaging 91°F. That is a long stretch for a compressor and condenser fan to run almost every day without a break, and the parts that keep the system charged and cooling take the wear.
Breaux Bridge has also seen 24 damaging wind events and 14 hail storms over the past ten years, with hail up to 2.75 inches. Wind drives debris into the condenser coil and can bend the fins that let it release heat. Hail that size can dent the cabinet or damage the coil itself. When the coil can't shed heat the way it should, the system struggles to cool the house even though it keeps running.
- 7 months
- April through October, your air conditioner is on duty
- 91°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 14 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 24 wind events
- in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new air conditioner would cut about $70 a year off cooling for a typical St. Martin Parish home.
Estimates for a typical St. Martin Parish home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Louisiana 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.
Louisiana requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors tests contractors before it licenses them, and it keeps a record of who holds that license. It licenses the contractor, not the individual repair, so the license tells you the business met the state's standard, not that this specific job was checked off by anyone.
For a repair on your air conditioner, the license is what backs the contractor doing the work. If the job involves opening the refrigerant side of the system, which most air conditioner repairs do, the technician also needs EPA Section 608 certification. That one comes from the federal government, not the state, and every technician who handles refrigerant is required to hold it no matter where they work.
Source: Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- The most common cause is a dirty air filter choking off airflow, so check that first since it is the easiest to fix. Low refrigerant from a leak is another common cause, and that takes a licensed contractor to find and repair since it means opening the refrigerant side of the system. A failing compressor or a frozen evaporator coil will also cut off cold air, and both need a contractor to diagnose. Running the system with warm air blowing for very long in a Breaux Bridge summer can make a small problem worse, so it is worth getting it looked at soon.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Most of the time this means the condensate drain line is clogged and water is backing up instead of draining outside. Algae and dirt build up in that line over a cooling season and block it. A dirty air filter can also cause the evaporator coil to freeze, and when it thaws it can put out more water than the drain pan was built to handle. A contractor can clear the line and check the coil to find which one is happening in your case.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat. Check that it has power, the batteries are good if it uses them, and it is set to cool with the temperature below the room temperature. If the thermostat looks fine, check the breaker panel, since a tripped breaker will keep the whole system from starting. If the breaker is fine and the unit still will not turn on, the problem is likely in the electrical components or the capacitor inside the unit, and that calls for a licensed contractor to open it up and test.