AIR CONDITIONER HOUSTON

Weeks have passed since Harvey raged through Houston, leaving in it’s wake devastating flood waters and unmeasurable destruction. If your home or business was affected by the storm, you have probably found yourself working through your property trying to determine what can be salvaged and repaired versus what you must replace.  Hurricane Harvey and Your AC System   In many situations, when it comes to flood damage in an air conditioning unit, it is much more cost efficient to replace your unit instead of trying to repair it. In fact, AHRI (Air-Conditioning, Heating & Refrigeration Institute) has recommended replacing the flooded equipment instead of hiring someone to try to repair it because of costs alone. If you do wish to explore repairing a unit that has been submerged in water, it should be done from a professional HVAC technician because of the potential hazards from a failed electrical system, corrosion on sensitive and dangerous mechanics such as the motor, compressor malfunctions and more. These issues not only cause the repairs to be costly but also dangerous for someone without the proper experience and knowledge.  Air Conditioning Flooding Houston   It’s not all bad news though! If your unit was over 5 years old then this is a great time to consider making the switch to an energy-efficient system that will save you money in the long run. Not only do energy-efficient units require much less energy to operate, they also do so with much higher performance and are better for the environment. Also, be sure to check out our financing options to see if we can work with you. If you had flood insurance, check in with your provider if your unit received damage to see if it’s covered. If it isn’t we can research to see if there are […]

Living in Houston, Texas one of the most important things that need to function correctly in our homes is our air conditioner unit.  This summer especially has been very hot and humid from the beginning.  The worse thing that could happen is your AC suddenly stop working or not even turn on at all.   Thankfully, there are some steps that you can take to figure out just what the problem may be and possibly fix, but keep in mind that some problems are best left to the HVAC specialists like Autumn Mechanical.   You will find that most air conditioning systems are built to last anywhere from 10 to 20 years, though throughout that time do not be surprised that they may some TLC or even possibly repairs.  To help potentially prevent these issues from arising, have your annual maintenance tune-up scheduled each spring.   Spending a little money for the annual maintenance tune-up can help save you lots compared to it breaking down and having to pay for repairs.   Some common issues that may be the problem have some simply solutions: When you AC does not cool rooms evenly:  Check and make sure that the fan that is on your unit is pushing the air into all the rooms and into the duct system. The AC turns on and runs, but you do not feel any cool air:  Firstly check and make sure that your thermostat is set to the correct temperature.  If it is, check the indoor and outdoor units, make sure that the condenser and evaporator do not have dirt or debris that could possibly be causing issues. You hear the condenser unit returns on and off:  If the unit is turning off and on repeatedly could possibly mean that the condenser or fan is […]

In Houston, Texas it is always important to keep you and your family nice and cool during those hot and humid summer months.  So when you are left to search for a new air conditioning system or purchasing a new one for your newly built home, finding the right one is important.   Not only is it important to find a AC system that properly cools your home as well as help keep your energy bill low, but having one that does not create a horrible and loud racket is a need as well.  Especially if you have little ones that take naps during the day and tend to be light sleepers.   When it comes to comparing different units, there is a section called decibel (dB) that is the sound rating.  The lower the number, the quieter the unit runs.  There is a simple way to break down just exactly how loud that means.   When it comes to a unit that is around 80 dB, think of turning on your garbage disposal and it is grinding up a bunch of food and such.  Now think of a unit that is around 70 dB, especially the higher 70’s, think of vacuuming your carpet.   Then if you see some that are around 60 dB you can compare this to when you are at a restaurant and there are lots of different conversations going on.  Finally, ones that are around 50 dB are similar to having a quiet conversation in your home.   This just all gives you a general idea of what the sound level would be for each section of the dB levels.  Now when you compare levels of dB, you will have a better idea of exactly how loud each one can be.   As of 2015, […]

We all know that in the great state of Texas, especially in the Houston area, that the summers get to be very hot and humid.  During that time, all of us Houstonians like to stay cool and comfortable in our homes.  So when our AC stops working, we are usually not very happy.   One thing that can cause our air conditioning systems to quit working is if the circuit breaker gets tripped.  When the air conditioner trips the circuit breaker, there could be a few reasons why that need to be addressed right away.  If they are not, potential harm can come to the equipment or even cause a fire.   The main reason why a breaker would trip is because it’s pulling more amps than the breaker is suppose to handle.  What this means is that if the breaker is suppose to only be a 20-amp, but your air conditioner is working at 30-amps, this will cause the breaker to trip.   There are a few commons things that can cause the breaker to trip, which these things can be correctly either by yourself or a professional, but are pretty easy to fix.   Check your outdoor part of the unit, it may be possible that it is pretty dirty which you can get a HVAC contractor like Autumn Mechanical out there to give it a nice annual tune up.  This is always best left to a professional, as they can also check for an leaks, recharge the refrigerant if needed, and more.  This will help keep your system up and running to the standards it needs to be to give you its best.   Check your air filter, if it is dirty this can cause the AC unit to over work it.  If you find that the […]

I bet when you have taken a look at your indoor air conditioner that you may have noticed that there was water dripping.  First time most people notice this they immediately think something is wrong, but rest-a-sure that this is completely normal.   Have you ever gotten a bottle of water out from the fridge and set it down, and usually within a few minutes you start seeing water collecting on the outside of the bottle, which is known as condensation.  This is basically what happens to the indoor air conditioning unit.   The way our bodies work to cool us down is by sweating, and when the sweat evaporates, it takes the heat along with it.  The only bad thing is that if the moisture in the air is really high our sweat will not evaporate, which makes it very difficult to cool down.   Refrigerant that is used by your air conditioning system is what is used to give the cooling effect in your home.  What it does is once the air in the home is sucked out of the room; the refrigerant pulls the heat from the air which all of that is pushed through to the outdoor unit.  There, the heat is released and the now cooled air is pushed back into the home and out into the rooms through the registers and vents.   With the indoor unit, when that air hits the evaporator and the refrigerant, the moisture that is in the air itself gets condensed.  It then drips into the drain that is in the AC unit.   The amount of liquid that gets condensed in the evaporator varies.  This is due to how humid each day is, and we all know here in Houston it stays pretty humid quite often, especially in […]

We all know how hot and humid the summers in Houston, Texas can be.  Being without air conditioning can be a major nightmare, but having an AC unit that also tends to have a funky smell to it definitely is not a plus either.   When you crank on your AC you should get that relief from the heat feeling refreshed, but getting smacked with this real foul, majorly stinky smell coming from your vents definitely does not give you that refresh and relief feeling.   If you do find that you have a foul smell coming from your registers or vents, it is best to see about getting that fixed as soon as possible.  Not only is the smell difficult to deal with, but it can also end up being hazardous for you and your family.   There are a few reasons that could cause your AC unit to be blowing out that foul smelling air: If your drip pan is clogged – Mildew can grow if this drip pan has been moved, filling up too fast, or is clogged.  If the clog can be seen, you more than likely can unclog it on your own, but if you cannot, it will more than likely need the assistance of a HVAC specialist. If your filters are clogged or dirty – Your air filters are built to catch dust, dirt, debris, and much more.  If they are expose to too much moisture or the tiny, organic particles that it catches can accelerate their mildew growth if exposed to moisture.  This you can handle yourself by changing out the filter. If there is moisture in your ductwork – Ductwork is what the maze of tunnels coming from your outdoor AC unit that delivers the cooled air to each room through registers […]