AC Repair in Paragould, AR
Air conditioners here run from May through September. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Greene County will get in touch.
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Five months of Arkansas heat, hard on the system
From May through September your air conditioner is working most days, with summer afternoons here averaging 89°F. That kind of stretch doesn't let the system rest. The compressor runs long hours to keep up, and the capacitor that helps start it takes the strain over and over until it weakens. When it finally gives out, the unit hums but the fan won't turn, or it won't start at all.
Greene County has also seen its share of hail and wind, 35 hail events and 42 damaging wind events over the past ten years, with hail up to 2.75 inches. That kind of weather can bend the fins on your outdoor coil or knock the unit out of alignment, and you may not notice until the air coming from your vents isn't as cold as it should be.
- 5 months
- May through September, your air conditioner is on duty
- 89°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 35 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 42 wind events
- in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new air conditioner would cut about $50 a year off cooling for a typical Greene County home.
Estimates for a typical Greene County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Arkansas 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.
Arkansas requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The state license is tied to the contractor, not the specific job, so the same license covers every AC repair that contractor takes on. Because Arkansas holds this licensing power at the state level, no county or city in Greene County can add its own license requirement on top of it.
For a repair like this, that state license is what stands behind the work. If the job involves opening the refrigerant side of the AC, the technician also needs EPA Section 608 certification, which is a federal requirement that applies in every state, not something Arkansas issues.
Source: Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- Most often the filter is clogged and starving the system of airflow, or the refrigerant charge is low. A dirty filter makes the coil freeze up, and once that happens the air coming out feels warm instead of cold. Low refrigerant means a leak somewhere in the line, and that will not fix itself. Check the filter first. If it is clean and the air is still warm, the system needs a contractor to check the charge and the coil.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- The condensate drain line is probably clogged. Your AC pulls moisture out of the air all summer long, and that water is supposed to run out through a drain line to the outside. Algae and dirt build up in that line over a season and block it, so the water backs up and drips inside instead. A frozen coil that is thawing out will do the same thing, so if the system was just running with warm air before the leak, that is likely the cause.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat and the breaker before assuming the worst. Check that the thermostat has power and is set to cool with the temperature well below room temperature, then check the breaker box for a tripped breaker, since a hard-working AC on a 89°F afternoon can trip one. If both of those check out and the system still will not start, the capacitor or the contactor inside the outdoor unit may have failed, and that is a job for a licensed contractor. Arkansas requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license, so ask for it before any work begins.