AC Repair in Tooele, UT
Air conditioners here run from June through August. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Tooele County will get in touch.
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Three hard months on your AC, and storms in between
Your air conditioner in Tooele County works hard for a short stretch. June through August, with afternoons averaging 89°F, the compressor runs long hours to keep the house cool. That kind of steady load wears on the run capacitor and the contactor, the parts that keep the compressor starting and stopping the way it should. When one of them goes, the unit hums but the compressor never kicks on, or it shuts off on its own before the house cools down.
The county has also logged 497 damaging wind events and 7 hail storms over the past ten years, with hail up to 1.75 inches. Wind can bend the thin aluminum fins on the outdoor coil or knock the unit out of level, and hail that size can dent the cabinet or damage the fan. If your AC started acting up right after a storm, that is worth mentioning when you call for repair.
- 3 months
- June through August, your air conditioner is on duty
- 89°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 7 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 497 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 Tooele County, so the repair decision comes down to the unit's condition.
Estimates for a typical Tooele County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Utah 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.
Utah requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The license is held by the contractor, not issued job by job, and it comes from the state testing and keeping a record of that contractor through the Division of Professional Licensing. In Utah, work under $7,000 does not need a licensed contractor, so a small repair can fall outside that requirement depending on the price.
Most air conditioner repairs involve opening the refrigerant side of the system, and that work requires EPA Section 608 certification no matter which state you're in. That certification is federal, not a state license, and it exists because handling refrigerant wrong is the dangerous part of the job.
Sources: Utah State Legislature · Utah Department of Commerce
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- Most often the filter is clogged and starving the system of airflow, or the refrigerant level is low from a leak. A dirty filter makes the coil freeze up, and once that happens you get weak or warm air until the ice melts. Low refrigerant needs a licensed technician, since only someone with EPA Section 608 certification can legally open that side of the system.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Water around your unit usually means the condensate drain line is clogged or the coil has frozen and is now melting. The drain line carries away the water your AC pulls out of the air, and algae or dirt can block it over time. If the coil froze first, check the filter, since restricted airflow is the usual cause.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat and the breaker, since those cause more no-start calls than anything inside the unit. If the thermostat has power and the breaker hasn't tripped, the capacitor or the contactor may have failed. Summer afternoons here run hot, so a system that won't start is worth getting looked at the same day.