On a hot 95+ degree day, no one wants to deal with melted ice cream. That’s why we have air conditioning!

Hot weather here in Austin means trips to Barton Springs, bike rides, and cookouts on the patio with tall iced beverages. It’s all fun in the sun until your air conditioning goes out.

Below we’ll take a look at some of the most common AC problems and offer some tips for basic air conditioner troubleshooting.

How air conditioners work

Air conditioning systems cool air using an evaporator coil within your inside AC unit. Inside the coil is a refrigerant such as Freon that cools down the coil. The AC unit draws in warm air and blows it over the coil, where the refrigerant absorbs the heat and the newly chilled air is sent back into your home. The hot refrigerant is cycled outside your home to the compressor unit where it transfers the … Read Full Post »

It’s getting hot in Central Texas.

We’ve been lucky this year in Austin. Due to all the rain, temperatures are still slightly below sweltering!

Now that the warmer temperatures have arrived, everyone is thankful for the modern marvel of air conditioning. It is now possible to be burning up one moment and freezing the next as you move between the outdoors and heavily air conditioned spaces.

Air conditioning is such a part of modern life that we take it for granted.

Until it breaks down and wreaks havoc.

Here’s a little history lesson that will give you an understanding of the myriad ways people attempted to cool down before air conditioners arrived on the market.

Given that the modern air conditioner was not invented until the early 20th century, humans have been experimenting with ways to cool down for centuries.

• The ancient Egyptians hung reeds in their windows and wet them with a stream of water. Air … Read Full Post »
  

As a Central Texas resident, you likely experience only a few short months during which your air conditioner is turned off. We’ve had a pretty mild year so far in 2016, so you could have just turned on your AC within the last few weeks! In any case, heading into our 100-degree days of summer, it’s vital to make sure that your AC is ready to operate at full capacity. We’ve all heard stories of people who have had their AC break down in the heat of summer, or been victims of an AC breakdown ourselves. Take some time before it gets too hot to do some DIY AC maintenance. If you run into any problem areas, you’ll still have wiggle room for an air conditioner tune-up.

Doing any air conditioner maintenance yourself can be intimidating – the thought of tampering with (and possibly breaking) your AC unit is pretty scary. … Read Full Post »