AC Repair in Bangor, ME
Air conditioners here run from July through July. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Penobscot County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Bangor doesn't ask much of your AC, until a storm does
Summer afternoons here top out around 77°F, and cooling season really only runs through July. Your air conditioner isn't fighting extreme heat most of the year, so when it stops working, the cause is usually something sudden rather than months of strain.
Penobscot County has logged 188 damaging wind events and 42 hail events over the past ten years, with hailstones up to 1.75 inches. Wind can rock or knock loose an outdoor unit, and hail that size can dent the fins on the coil outside or bend the housing around it. If your AC started acting up after a storm, that outdoor unit is the first place a contractor will look.
- 1 months
- July through July, your air conditioner is on duty
- 77°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 42 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 188 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 Penobscot County, so the repair decision comes down to the unit's condition.
Estimates for a typical Penobscot County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Maine 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.
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- The most common reason is a dirty air filter cutting off airflow across the coil. When that happens the coil can ice up and the air coming through the vents turns weak and warm. Low refrigerant from a leak causes the same thing, and so does a failing compressor. Check the filter first since that's the one thing you can rule out yourself, and if it's clean, a contractor will need to check refrigerant levels and the compressor.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Water around your AC usually means the condensate drain line is clogged. Your unit pulls moisture out of the air as it cools, and that water is supposed to run out through a drain line to the outside. Algae and dirt build up in that line over time and block it, so the water backs up and drips inside the house instead. A cracked drain pan or a dirty air filter causing the coil to freeze and then thaw can also cause leaking.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat and the breaker before anything else. A dead thermostat battery, a tripped breaker, or a blown fuse will keep the whole system from starting even though nothing is wrong with the AC itself. If those check out, the capacitor that starts the compressor may have failed, which is common in units that have run for years. A contractor can test the capacitor and the electrical components directly.