One of the biggest and most common issues with the air conditioning system is a refrigerant leak. If your system is leaking, it can cause all sorts of performance and efficiency problems. In order to minimize the amount of damage that refrigerant leak can cause, it’s import to know what signs to look out for.
Air Conditioners don’t use up refrigerant
Under normal conditions, your system should not lose a refrigerant. Your air conditioner does not use refrigerant the way that a car uses up gas, instead it cycles the same refrigerant between your system’s indoor and outdoor units. When your air conditioner is operating with no problems, it will always contain the same amount of refrigerant. That’s why you should be suspicious of a company who keeps refilling your system with refrigerant without patching up any leaks.
Symptoms of an air conditioner refrigerant leak
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Your home takes a long time to cool. The refrigerant is what absorbs heat from inside of your home and carries it outside. If you don’t have enough refrigerant, it will take much longer to cool down your home.
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You hear a hissing sound. No, there is not a snake in your boot, just a refrigerant leak. As refrigerant leaks out of those holes, it often creates a hissing sound. This can be heard either inside your home or outside near the condensing unit, depending on the location of the leak.
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Your evaporator coils are frozen over. If the refrigerant is low, the coils will not be able to absorb as much heat as they normally would which can cause condensation to build on the coils to freeze over and can lead to a system breakdown.
If you have any of these issues going on in your home, please contact Legacy Heating and Air and we will inspect your air conditioner thoroughly and repair any leaks that we might find. This is also a great time to tune up your air conditioner.
