AC Repair in Kent, OH
Air conditioners here run from June through August. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Portage County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Three months of heavy use, and storms that don't help
Your air conditioner in Kent works hard for a short stretch. June through August, with afternoons averaging 81°F, it runs for three months and then sits idle the rest of the year. That start-stop pattern, long runs all summer then months of nothing, is hard on a system, especially the parts that don't get checked between seasons.
Portage County has also logged 93 damaging wind events and 12 hail storms over the past ten years, with hail up to 2 inches. Wind can knock the outdoor unit's cabinet loose or bend the fins that let it release heat. Hail that size can dent the coil or crack the fan blade. If your air conditioner is blowing warm air or the outdoor unit sounds off after a storm, that is often where to look.
- 3 months
- June through August, your air conditioner is on duty
- 81°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 12 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 93 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 Portage County, so the repair decision comes down to the unit's condition.
Estimates for a typical Portage 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.
In Portage County, whether the contractor working on your air conditioner needs a license depends on whether the county itself requires one. Ohio does not test or record HVAC contractors at the state level. The state's only statewide definition is that a home contractor carry at least $250,000 in liability insurance, which is a description of coverage, not a credential anyone earns.
Since your job is refrigerant repair, the credential that actually applies here comes from the federal government, not the state or county. Anyone who opens the refrigerant side of your air conditioner, whether to check a charge or fix a leak, has to hold EPA Section 608 certification. That rule holds in every state, Ohio included, regardless of what the county does or does not require.
Source: Ohio Legislative Service Commission
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- The most common cause is a dirty air filter choking off airflow across the coil. When that happens the coil can freeze up and stop pulling heat out of the air. Low refrigerant from a leak causes the same weak, warm airflow, but that needs a licensed contractor to find and fix. Check the filter first since it's the one thing you can rule out yourself.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Most of the time the condensate drain line is clogged and water is backing up instead of draining outside. Algae and dust build up in that line over a cooling season and eventually block it. A dirty filter can also cause this by freezing the coil, which then drips as it thaws. If the pan itself has rusted through, the leak will keep coming back until it's replaced.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat and the breaker before assuming the worst. A dead thermostat battery or a tripped breaker will stop the whole system cold. If those check out, a tripped safety switch near the indoor unit, often from a clogged drain line, will also keep it from starting. Kent gets its share of summer storms, and a power blip after one of those can sometimes leave a system needing a reset at the thermostat or breaker.