AC Repair in Salem, NJ
Air conditioners here run from June through September. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Salem County will get in touch.
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Four months of heat, then it stops
Salem County only asks for cooling from June through September, but those afternoons average 85°F. Your air conditioner sits idle most of the year, then has to run hard the moment summer hits, and a unit that has been sitting doesn't always start clean.
Summer here also brings storms. Salem County has logged 73 damaging wind events and 6 hail events over the past ten years, with hail up to 1.5 inches. Wind can bend the fins on your outdoor unit or knock it out of level, and hail that size can dent the cabinet or damage the fan blade. If your AC is making noise it didn't make last summer, or isn't cooling like it used to, that outdoor unit is worth a look.
- 4 months
- June through September, your air conditioner is on duty
- 85°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 6 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 73 wind events
- in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new air conditioner would cut about $30 a year off cooling for a typical Salem County home.
Estimates for a typical Salem County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, New Jersey 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.
New Jersey requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
New Jersey tests and records HVAC contractors through the State Board of Examiners of HVACR Contractors before it grants a license. That license belongs to the contractor, not to any single job, and it stands for every repair they do in the state. No town in New Jersey can layer on its own license requirement, so the state board is the one record that follows the contractor to your door in Salem County.
For the repair itself, that license is what backs the person working on your air conditioner. If the job means opening the refrigerant side of the system, which most compressor and leak repairs do, the technician also has to hold EPA Section 608 certification, the same federal requirement that applies in every state. That certification covers the handling of refrigerant specifically, separate from the New Jersey license that covers the contractor doing the work.
Sources: New Jersey Legislature · New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs
- 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 ice up, and once it's frozen the air coming through the vents turns warm instead of cold. Low refrigerant from a leak causes the same thing, but that's a repair for a licensed technician, since opening the refrigerant side requires EPA certification. Check the filter first. If it's clean and you're still getting warm air, the system needs a professional look.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Most of the time this is a clogged condensate drain line. Your AC pulls moisture out of the air all summer, and that water is supposed to run out through a drain line to the outside. Algae and dirt build up in that line over months of use and block it, so the water backs up and drips inside instead. A frozen coil that's now thawing will also puddle water, usually from restricted airflow. Either way, a contractor can clear the line or find the airflow problem.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat and the breaker. If the thermostat screen is blank, check its batteries. If it's dead, check the breaker panel for a tripped breaker to the outdoor unit. With 73 damaging wind events recorded here over the past ten years, a tripped breaker after a storm is common. If the breaker won't stay reset or the thermostat looks fine and the system still won't start, the problem is likely electrical inside the unit, and that calls for a licensed contractor.