Boehmer Heating & Cooling Blog: Posts Tagged ‘air conditioning repair’

Air Filter Buying Guide: Choosing the Right Filter for Your Home

Monday, May 10th, 2021
hand-putting-in-air-filter

Did you know that the air filters that come standard with your HVAC systems aren’t there to protect your indoor air quality at all? They certainly don’t hurt, but they’re actually in place to protect the interior components of the HVAC systems themselves from dirt, dust, and other debris that can get in and harm their components.

So, when we talk about air filters, we’re talking about air filtration systems—systems that will help improve the health, breathability, and safety of your indoor air. And don’t worry, finding just the right air filtration for you home isn’t something we expect you to do all on your own. This is what we are here for! We are home comfort and home efficiency experts and you can count on us to lead you the right direction with your air filtration options, which all starts with MERV.

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Heed These Signs of AC System Problems

Monday, June 17th, 2019

technician-working-on-air-conditionerComparatively speaking, our summers are fairly mild in our part of the country. Still though, heat is relative to what we’re used to—so when an air conditioner breaks down on an 80°F+ day, we have a right to complain! Of course, we don’t ever want you to reach that point, if we can help it. The best way to prevent any problems with your air conditioner is by scheduling annual maintenance with a professional—or biannual maintenance if you have a year-round heat pump.

But even with maintenance, repair needs can still crop up. Ignoring or delaying them can only cause more harm to your AC system. Some good news in all of this is that most AC repair issues do give out signs and symptoms well before they cause your system to break down entirely. While we would never recommend a homeowner formally diagnosing or trying to repair a faulty AC by themselves, you can certainly spot the signs that you need air conditioning repair, and give us a call from there.

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Don’t Wait: Schedule End-of-Season Air Conditioning Repairs

Monday, August 28th, 2017

AC-repair-maintenanceAs the summer draws to a close in the upcoming weeks, you may still need your air conditioner for a bit longer. A heat wave can come at any time, and humidity levels can rise out of control. But if your air conditioner shows signs of slowing, you may be tempted to put off repairs until next year’s spring shows its head.

But we believe this is a mistake. Read on to find out how much worse your air conditioner can get the longer you wait, and why we think it’s in your best interest to make AC repairs ASAP. For more advise or to reach out to a qualified technician for your air conditioning repair in Bethel Park, PA, give us a call!

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How Minor Issues in a Home Make AC Bills Higher

Monday, July 17th, 2017

ac-unit-moneyWhen your air conditioning bills are higher than usual, you may come to think that’s just the hand you’ve been dealt. After all, air conditioning equipment does become less efficient with time, and variations in the weather certainly have an effect on how much energy your system requires. While AC equipment and outdoor temperatures can certainly be at fault for your high bills, there may be other factors under your control.

Conditions within the home influence how well your air conditioner works, and these are often things that can be repaired. Check out some of the home troubles that can make energy bills soar, and call our team to help you get the changes you need.

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Give Your AC System a Break This Summer with These Tips

Monday, June 19th, 2017

man-fan-hatWe know how much you’d love to run the air conditioner at full blast all day when it starts to get hot and humid outside. However, this simply is not doable when you factor in the cost of energy. Besides, running your air conditioner all day long would really wear out the system, potentially forcing it to fail far sooner than expected and to require frequent repairs. Your system is designed to cycle off for long periods of time because your air conditioner needs a break!

Give your system a bit of a break this summer by following our expert tips and by calling our thorough, experienced team for all of your air conditioning needs in Pittsburgh.

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Ways to Avoid Air Conditioning Repair This Summer

Monday, April 13th, 2015

If we could offer you an air conditioning system that was guaranteed never to break, we’d do it in a Pittsburgh minute. We can’t do that because such an air conditioning system doesn’t exist, but what our experts can offer you are some great tips on how to avoid air conditioning repair and reduce your incidence of repair.

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Air Conditioning Repair: Could It Be the Thermostat?

Wednesday, September 17th, 2014

When your air conditioner malfunctions or breaks down, it can be easy to jump to the worst conclusions:

  • The compressor blew!
  • A fan motor is shot!
  • My whole system is a mess!

Sometimes, it can be this: the thermostat.

Thermostats are sensitive instruments, and because they control when your air conditioner cycles, problems with it can look like a lot of other (potentially bad) things. If you’ve ruled out the possibility of other problems, it may be time to focus your air conditioning repair in Pittsburgh on your thermostat, with the help of a trained professional from Boehmer Heating & Cooling.

Signs of Problems with Your Thermostat

There are a few signs that your thermostat may be malfunctioning:

  • Short cycling – your system is turning on and off too much and not achieving target temperatures
  • Large temperature swings – you are seeing wild temperature swings in your home without changing the temperature
  • Won’t turn on at all – your AC won’t start

Common Causes of Thermostat Problems

As we stated above, thermostats are sensitive instruments, so even small things can alter their proper operation. Here are some common causes of thermostat malfunction:

  • Dirt and dust – dirt and dust can easily get inside your thermostat, and when they make a home on the instrumentation, they can interfere with the workings of the entire thermostat. The removal of dirt and dust requires a delicate cleaning of the inside and outside of the thermostat.
  • Thermostat isn’t level – to operate properly, a thermostat needs to be level and at least 5 feet up from your floor. Otherwise, the orientation affects the readings, and the cooler temperature of the floor (unless you have radiant heat) can contribute to an incorrect reading.
  • Loose wires – faulty connections with the wires can cut off the power to the thermostat, or make the power flow intermittently, disrupting operation.

Thermostat repairs are best handled by a professional, and it’s important to make them as quickly as possible before the issues can cause more problems. If you need thermostat or any other air conditioning repair in Pittsburgh, be sure to call the company that has been around for 80 years: Boehmer Heating & Cooling.

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Air Conditioning Repair Tip: Hissing Sounds

Friday, June 13th, 2014

Strange sounds coming from an air conditioner are usually warnings that the system needs to have professionals look into it to see if there are repair needs that must be taken care of soon. Some of the more prominent warning noises are grinding and groaning mechanical sounds, screeching, slapping and clanging, and rapid clicking.

A less obvious noise, but one that is still a cause for great concern, is a hissing that sounds like escaping steam or gas. When you hear this noise from your AC, do not wait: call for air conditioning repair in Pittsburgh, PA right away. Boehmer Heating & Cooling is on call 24 hours a day to service your AC with the necessary help to get it working again and out of danger of a major breakdown.

What That Hissing Sound Means and Why It’s Serious

The hissing sound coming from an air conditioner is the high-pressure refrigerant escaping from a leak along the lines, in the coils, or from the compressor. The refrigerant inside your AC is at a set level, known as its “charge,” that must remain the same for the air conditioner to work correctly. Refrigerant does not dissipate during normal operation, so losing charge isn’t a problem…unless a leak occurs.

When the refrigerant charge in an air conditioning system starts to drop, the AC will have a harder time absorbing sufficient heat along the indoor coil, and this will result in a drop in cooling power. As the evaporator coil struggles to absorb enough heat, the refrigerant will remain too low a temperature, and this will cause ice to start to form across the coil, which will further drop the heat absorption. Eventually, a solid block of ice will cover the coil and no heat exchange—and therefore no cooling—will take place.

The loss of refrigerant also means a change in pressure throughout the AC, and that can cause damage to the system. Most troubling of all is the damage that the low refrigerant can cause the compressor, which may eventually overheat without sufficient refrigerant. A burnt-out compressor usually means the whole air conditioner must be replaced.

How to Solve the Problem

The safest and surest way to deal with leaking refrigerant is to call for professionals. You will have a hard time finding the leak on your own, and even if you could seal it, you would not know how much refrigerant to recharge or even the right blend to use.

Call Boehmer Heating & Cooling when you have a hissing system that needs air conditioning repair in Pittsburgh, PA. We’ve delivered comfort since 1933.

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Air Conditioning Repair FAQ: Can I Just Scrape the Ice off the Coils?

Friday, April 18th, 2014

We use our air conditioners a lot during the summertime, when our temperatures are warm and a little cool air is a welcome relief. Unfortunately, most repairs come at a time when you need your air conditioner the most, and rather than waiting for a repairman, some homeowners might think of trying to fix the problem themselves. Take the matter of ice building up on the coils. “Can’t I just scrape the ice off the coils?” you ask (a pretty frequent air conditioning repair FAQ). In point of fact, you really shouldn’t it won’t solve the problem, and can actually make things much worse.

The problem with the ice lies in where it forms: the evaporator coils, which serve to cool the air. When ice forms, it serves to insulate the coils from the air it’s supposed to cool, making it harder for the air conditioner to do its job. It also indicates something is wrong with the refrigerant pressure in your system.

So why not just scrape the ice off? Because while the ice creates problems, it’s not the source of the issue. It forms when refrigerant levels are lower than they should be in your air conditioner, usually because of a leak. You can scrape the ice off, but it will just reform again until you seal the leak and recharge refrigerant levels. Even worse, your efforts to scrape the ice off could damage the coils, and turn a relatively inexpensive repair into an extremely costly one.

If you know you can’t just scrape the ice off the coils, the next step is to call in the experts at Boehmer Heating & Cooling. We have the answers to many air conditioning repair FAQs you may have, and always perform repairs with professionalism and pride. If you spot ice on your coils, give us a call. There’s no one better to handle air conditioning repair in Pittsburgh!

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Pittsburgh, PA Air Conditioning FAQ: Why Your System Short Cycles

Tuesday, July 23rd, 2013

Air conditioning systems are designed to turn on when the temperature rises to a certain level, and then turn off again after the temperature drops. Normally, an air conditioning unit will run for at least 10 minutes before turning itself off. In some cases, however, your air conditioner may “short cycle,” turning on and off more frequently than it should. If your system short cycles, you need to address the issue lest it result in higher electric bills or additional damage to your unit. A number of factors may cause short-cycling, most of which can be diagnosed and fixed by a trained technician.

  • Size: If your air conditioning system is too large for the space it needs to heat, it may short cycle very quickly. The best way to avoid this problem is to have a load calculation performed on your home to determine exactly what capacity air conditioning system that you need.
  • Refrigerant leak: Air conditioning systems use refrigerant to absorb the heat in your home and carry it outside. The refrigerant is supposed to be in a completely self-contained system; and short cycling may mean that that a leak has sprung up somewhere.
  • Icing: The evaporator coil may develop ice on its surface, which can cause your AC to turn off and on very quickly until the ice melts. Icing on the coils suggests a larger problem with the system, and again requires the attention of a trained expert.
  • Control board: Though unlikely, a control board or control switch might be damaged or broken, which is causing short cycling. In such an event, the control board will probably need to be replaced.

For over 80 years, Boehmer Heating & Cooling has handled air conditioning problems in the Pittsburgh, PA area. Our knowledgeable staff is fully certified and dedicated to customer satisfaction. If your system is short cycling and you need to pinpoint the cause, give us a call to set up an appointment immediately. We’ll root out the source of the problem and make sure it gets fixed the first time every time.

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