AC Repair in La Crosse, WI
Air conditioners here run from June through August. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers La Crosse County will get in touch.
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Three hard months, and storms in between
La Crosse only asks for cooling from June through August, but those afternoons average 80°F and the unit has to keep up right from the start of the season. It doesn't get the gradual warm-up that would let a weak capacitor or a low refrigerant charge show itself slowly. It runs hard from day one.
The county has logged 66 hail events and 100 damaging wind events over the past ten years. Hail up to 4 inches across bends the thin fins on an outdoor coil, and wind drives debris into the cabinet and against the fan blade. A unit that was cooling fine before a storm can start blowing warm air right after, and the fins or the fan are the first place to look.
- 3 months
- June through August, your air conditioner is on duty
- 80°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 66 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 100 wind events
- in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new air conditioner would save little on running costs in La Crosse County, so the repair decision comes down to the unit's condition.
Estimates for a typical La Crosse County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Wisconsin 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.
Wisconsin requires contractors to register with the state.
That registration puts the business on file with the state, but nobody tests the contractor's work to get it. Wisconsin also does not let counties or cities layer on their own HVAC license, so this is the only state record that exists on a contractor anywhere in Wisconsin.
For a repair on an air conditioner, the protection that matters is federal. Any technician who opens the refrigerant side of your system, which a repair like this usually requires, has to hold EPA Section 608 certification. That certification is what says this person is trained to handle refrigerant, not the state registration.
Sources: Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau · Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- Most often the filter is clogged and blocking airflow across the coil, or the refrigerant is low from a leak. A dirty filter makes the coil so cold it ices over, and once that happens you get weak air that never cools. It can also be a failing capacitor that lets the outdoor fan or compressor run poorly or not at all. Check the filter first since that is the one thing worth trying before calling someone out.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Water around your unit usually means the condensate drain line is clogged and backing up instead of draining outside. Algae and dust build up in that line over a cooling season and block it. It can also mean the coil iced over and is now melting and overflowing the drain pan. A cracked or rusted drain pan will leak too, and that one needs replacing rather than clearing.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat, since a dead battery or a setting bumped off cool will stop the system before it ever tries to start. Next check the breaker, since AC units trip breakers more than most other things in the house. If those are fine, the problem is likely inside the unit, a failed capacitor or a safety switch keeping it from starting, and that calls for a contractor to look at it. With La Crosse averaging 100 damaging wind events over the past ten years, it is also worth checking that the outdoor disconnect near the unit was not knocked loose.