Air conditioning service guide

To get maximum energy efficiency of your air conditioner, choose a good AC contractor and bet on a good AC service. This is very important for lower cooling bills.

Certified Air conditioner Services and contractors

When selecting AC services, prefer qualified AC contractors and professional technicians. In USA consider members of organizations like SMACNA (Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors' National Association) or ACCA (Air Conditioning Contractors of America).

Technicians should also be certified by organizations like North American Technician Excellence (NATE).You will find extensive listings of certified technicians at NATE and ACCA.

In Europe consider the AREA and its several national members: see AREA national members.

In Australia consider the AMCA and its associates.

AC Servicing areas

Air conditioner servicing involves areas like coils and blower cleaning. But also areas like the AC airflow, refrigerant charge and duct sealing.

See, on these issues:
Air Conditioners Malfunction
Room and Central AC filters
Air Conditioners Refrigerant
Cleaning Air Conditioning Coils
AC Blower
Window air conditioner maintenance

Selecting aC services and Contractors

When selecting AC services and contractors, be skeptical of very low prices.

AC professionals offering very low prices may be trying to promote outdated equipment or not including key services and common warranties; and, in the case of commissioning services, they might be omitting important tasks, warranties, inspections…

Be also skeptical of companies offering estimates over the phone without checking and inspecting the job to be done.

Also distrust of contractors that do not advice high efficiency AC: some companies do not keep their employees current with the technology advances and tend to discourage their clients to buy new and more efficient AC designs.

Requiring good practises

Good contractor and air conditioner service technicians will ask you about the cooling problems you have, and are able to offer explanations and solutions.

Good AC contractors will determine your cooling-load needs, will audit your situation and the cooling energy bills associated with the equipment they are proposing.

Be also aware about the AC sizing issue: traditional contractors tend to oversize AC systems, causing higher operative costs and lower AC performance.

When estimating the proper size of an AC system, the contractor should spend enough time in your home, auditing the insulation, testing the ductwork for leaks and measuring the walls, floors and windows. Sizing an AC system by the square footage of a room or house isn't definitely a good practise. Be aware.

See: Air Conditioners Sizing Charts

Selecting Air conditioning Services

Consider different proposals, but when selecting a contractor or an air conditioning service technician, do not overvalue the price criteria.

Initial low-cost solutions may involve hidden costs. Non-efficient AC units, improper sizing, faulty installation and bad servicing will have large hidden costs. AC maintenance services should fix problems like inadequate airflow, or leaky AC ducts, or inadequate refrigerant charge. Without that, your cooling bills will be significantly higher.