AC Repair in Akron, OH
Air conditioners here run from June through August. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Summit County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Three months of hard running, every year
Summit County only asks for three months of cooling, June through August, but it asks hard. Afternoon highs average 81°F, and the system runs long hours to keep up. That kind of steady load wears on the compressor and the capacitor that helps start it.
The area has also seen its share of rough weather. Ten years of storm records show 38 hail events and 133 damaging wind events, with hail up to 2.5 inches. Hail dents the fins on an outdoor unit and bends the coil behind them, and wind throws branches and debris into it. After a bad storm, a unit that ran fine the day before can start blowing warm air or struggling to keep the house cool.
- 3 months
- June through August, your air conditioner is on duty
- 81°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 38 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 133 wind events
- in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new air conditioner would save little on running costs in Summit County, so the repair decision comes down to the unit's condition.
Estimates for a typical Summit County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Ohio 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.
In Ohio, HVAC licensing for homes is left to the counties.
Ohio does not test or license HVAC contractors at the state level. That is left to the counties, so whether a contractor is licensed depends on the rule where the house sits rather than on any state record. Ohio law does define what counts as a home contractor, and that definition includes carrying at least $250,000 in liability insurance, but that is a definition written into state law, not a license anyone earns.
For a repair like this one, the part that holds everywhere is federal. Any technician who opens the refrigerant side of your air conditioner has to hold EPA Section 608 certification, in Summit County or anywhere else in the country. That certification covers the refrigerant work itself, not the rest of the job.
Source: Ohio Legislative Service Commission
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- The most common reason is a dirty air filter choking off airflow across the coil. When that happens the coil can freeze, and warm air just passes over ice instead of cold metal. It can also mean the refrigerant is low from a leak, which a contractor needs to find and fix, since simply adding more won't hold. Check the filter first. If it's clean and the air still isn't cold, the system needs a proper look.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Most of the time it's the condensate drain line, clogged with algae or dirt so the water backs up and finds another way out. It can also mean the coil froze up and is now melting, which points back to poor airflow or low refrigerant. A cracked drain pan will do it too, especially in an older unit. Either way, water where it shouldn't be means something upstream needs attention.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat. Make sure it's set to cool and a few degrees below room temperature, and check the batteries if it has a screen that's dim or blank. If that's fine, check the breaker box, since AC units trip breakers more than most other things in the house. If the breaker keeps tripping, stop resetting it and get a contractor out, because that usually means the compressor or a wire is drawing too much current.