Your AC works much like a refrigerator; it moves heat from the inside of your home to the outside. Refrigerant is vital to this process. As it cycles through the AC system, it changes from a liquid to a gas and back again. This allows the refrigerant to absorb the heat in your home and release it outside so that indoor blowers can circulate cool air.
If your system has a refrigerant leak, it will not be able to complete this cycle, which may result in reduced cooling or no cooling at all. While this may initially cause only a little discomfort, the leak could force the evaporator coils to freeze, which may eventually cause system failure. It’s important to remember that only an AC technician is qualified to handle refrigerant and check for leaks, which are usually not visible to the human eye alone.
A technician may detect refrigerant leaks either during a scheduled maintenance call or when you call for air conditioning repair. You should call for repair as soon as you experience problems with your system. However, sometimes the leak is small enough that you don’t immediately notice the signs. This is why you should consider scheduling maintenance to check for common AC problems such as refrigerant leaks. We recommend scheduling maintenance once a year to decrease the chances of a serious leak that halts your AC system.
One sign of leaking refrigerant that your technician will look for is frozen evaporator coils. However, this symptom is not enough to determine the source of the leak. Refrigerant moves through your AC system rapidly via a looped tubing system with hundreds of connectors to help join the various twists and turns. Sometimes, refrigerant works its way slowly out of one of these joints. In many cases, leaks can only be located with a specific refrigerant detector that pinpoints the location of the leak.
Refrigerant leaks can be caught early with regular maintenance checks by a qualified technician. If you suspect a leak, don’t wait to call for repairs. When you run into problems and need reliable Portland air conditioning repair service, call Clean Air Act today!