The modern air conditioner is built to last for many years while experiencing only a minimum of malfunctions. But it is impossible to prevent all malfunctions, and one of the problems that can occur with a residential air conditioner is leaking refrigerant. Airborne chemicals in a house can contribute to spots of corrosion occurring along the refrigerant lines, leading to the high-pressure refrigerant gas escaping—often without any more outward sign aside from a slight hissing noise.
Loss of refrigerant of any amount is a significant problem for an air conditioning system. The moment you notice that your home’s AC is losing cooling power, call expert technicians. If the problem stems from a refrigerant leak, they will take care of the process of sealing the leaks and replacing the refrigerant that was lost.
The reasons this problem needs to be fixed—fast!
Refrigerant is a vital fluid for an air conditioner to carry out heat exchange. An AC does not consume refrigerant as it works, so it should have the identical refrigerant level (called the AC’s charge) for its entire service life. Because the refrigerant charge is match to the air conditioner, any drop in it will create serious problems.
First, the air conditioner will begin to lose cooling power. With less refrigerant, the air conditioner will absorb less thermal energy along the evaporator coil. This will trigger a second problem, which is the development of ice along the coil. The remaining refrigerant will be too cold, causing moisture on the coil to freeze. If enough ice is allowed to develop, heat exchange will cease entirely.
Finally, loss of refrigerant charge can cause catastrophic damage to the compressor to the point that it will overheat and burn out. A burnt-out compressor usually means that the entire air conditioning system must be replaced. You do not want to risk this sort of problem with your AC. Make sure that you summon repair technicians at the first sign of a decline in cooling power.
For fast emergency air conditioning repair service, call on Hall’s Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration. We serve Shreveport, LA and the surrounding areas.
