AC Repair Or AC Replacement Assessment

How to Determine If AC Repair is the Best Choice

Did this year’s air conditioner start-up procedure take a little longer than usual? Perhaps changing the thermostat setting from Heat to Cool was not enough, and it took an AC Repair call to step into the cooling season.

This might have led to an unsettling thought— “Will this crazy thing last until the end of the summer? Is it time to replace my AC system?” Here are a few follow-up questions to help you determine the immediate future of your air conditioner.

How Old is Your Air Conditioner?

Perhaps you owned this home during the last replacement cycle. But it has been a while, so you may need to do some checking. Or the last replacement cycle might have predated your ownership.

• Air conditioning systems typically last approximately 15 to 20 years; a rigorous maintenance schedule can add another 5 years of useful life. This will help you determine where your system is on this timeline.
• If you do not know the installation date, check the manufacturer’s tag with the make/model numbers. This does not tell you the installation date, but it does tell you the manufacturer’s date.

The age of the system will help you determine when to plan replacement or if AC Repair will get you through this summer’s heat.

Have You Calculated Repair Costs?

If your air conditioner is more than 10 years old, chances are more than one repair has been made.

• Repair costs are generally rather small at the beginning, but they rise over time.
• Also, be aware of the accumulation of repair costs; it adds up over time.
• At some point, the cost of a needed repair will be so high that repair costs might approach the cost of replacement. This will require a decision, perhaps under stress.

Have You Calculated Function Costs?

As an air conditioner ages and parts weaken, the system works harder to perform the tasks it used to perform with ease. Working harder means the system uses more energy and costs more to run. Efficiency will continue to decline over time.

The rise in utility costs might be hard to determine since the cost of electricity is also on the rise. However, it may be possible to research the number of kilo-watt hours your home uses each month over the last few years. An unexplained rise in energy consumption might be evidence of the loss of efficiency.

Is Your Home Less Comfortable?

This is the ultimate question. A failing system will struggle to keep up with heat during extreme temperatures, then during the heat of the day, and finally, struggle to keep up with normal summertime heat. A failing HVAC system will also fail to remove normal summertime humidity, resulting in surfaces feeling sticky and skin feeling moist or sweaty.

Whether you heard it from Schoolhouse Rock or Francis Bacon, it is still true that knowledge is power. By answering these questions, you have sufficient information to determine whether that AC repair was just a repair or whether it is an indication of the need to replace the system.

Need help with AC Repair? We Can Help! 

Let Doctor Cool help with your AC repair and AC Replacement questions. Call Doctor Cool & Professor Heat today at 281-338-8751 or email Doctor Cool.