What's Wrong?

The following is information to help you to understand what kind of problem you may be experiencing and what we may be able to do to help you get your system running smooth and keeping you comfortable.

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Q: "I came home from work today and the carpet is wet in front of my air conditioner closet.
What's wrong?"

A: Most likely the condensate drain is backed up due to a clog. A blast from our pressurized drain cleaner or should cure that quickly.

Q: "I see ice forming on the pipes at the outdoor unit and the closet and it's getting warm in here.
What's wrong?"

A: Ice is forming on the evaporator (the indoor section). The most common causes are low refrigerant charge or restricted airflow due to a dirty air filter. If the charge is low then your system needs attention to correct this problem.

Q: "My unit runs and runs and the temperature is just bearable on a hot day. My utility bills have been higher than last summer too.
What's wrong?"

A: Your system is apparently losing capacity and efficiency. This can be caused by a number of factors. Have you had any work done in your home that could have damaged your ducts causing leakage. Maybe your system has developed a refrigerant leak (a slow leak will cause a steady degradation to performance while maybe not causing a freeze- up as explained in the previous answer). Some units installed close to the shoreline will actually have their aluminum finned coils fall apart after some time. It could be as simple as a dirty condenser coil outside (don't try to clean it yourself, please, there is high voltage and sensitive electronic parts out there).

Q: "Yesterday was quite cold and while I was outside I noticed a strange noise from the outdoor unit. The fan stopped and smoke started rising from the top.
What's wrong?"

A: What you're describing is normal operation for a heat pump in winter. The "smoke" that you see is steam from the ice melting from the coil during the defrost cycle. The frequency that this occurs depends on the outdoor temperature.

Q: "My fan runs inside, but the outdoor unit is not running.
What's wrong?"

A: Maybe the circuit breaker has tripped. If it has tripped, don't try to reset it more than twice. You could cause more serious damage. Another possibility would be a severed control wire to the outdoor unit (think Weed-Eater). This is quite common where wires are not adequately protected. Call for help.