ServiceMax Blog: Archive for the ‘Air Conditioning’ Category

The MAX Comfort Plan Is the Best Thing for Your AC

Monday, April 22nd, 2019

checkmark-greenWhat does your air conditioning system need right now? If the weather is still cool, you might think the answer is “nothing.” But just because an AC isn’t currently running doesn’t mean it’s doing fine and won’t need any air conditioning services in Chicago, IL until later in the summer.

Right now, the best thing for your AC is maintenance through our MAX Comfort Plan. We don’t even have to take a look at your home’s air conditioner to know this, because every air conditioner benefits from a spring tune-up—and our MAX Comfort Plan tune-ups are among the best around.

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How to Find Out (Politely) the Age of Your Air Conditioner

Monday, September 10th, 2018

air-conditioners-recyclingIt’s not polite to ask people their age—unless they’re children, in which case they’ll probably tell you their exact age to half a year without you having to bring it up.

You never need to worry about offending your air conditioner by asking its age. But you may not know how to go about “asking.” This can be a problem if you’re debating whether to replace the system before next summer. An AC’s age is a vital piece of info for choosing “repair vs. replace.” If you didn’t originally install the air conditioner, you may have no idea how long it’s been in your home.

We can help. Discovering the age of a cooling system is simple once you know how. (Figuring out what to do afterwards is the tricky part!)

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The 5 Most Common Reasons for AC Problems

Monday, August 13th, 2018

Air-conditioner-repairmanAugust is often the hottest, most grueling month of the summer—and it’s a time when many air conditioning systems will start to experience malfunctions because of all the stress that’s been put on them. This is a good time to go over a list of the most common AC problems that can crop up, because this is when you’re most likely to run into one of them and have your comfort put in jeopardy!

If your AC runs afoul from one of the troubles below, you can find excellent professional repair service for your air conditioning in Northbrook, IL with just a call to our team. We’re available 24-hours a day, 7-days a week.

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Is an Air Conditioning System Enough to Control Humidity?

Monday, July 16th, 2018

flushed-man-in-front-of-fanWhen your air conditioning system is running during a humid summer day—and we get plenty of those in Chicagoland—you’ll occasionally hear a dripping sound coming from the unit. This isn’t because the AC uses water to help cool down the house. The only type of cooling system that does that is an evaporative cooler. What you’re hearing is the water moisture the air conditioner has drawn out of the air with the evaporator coil dripping down into a condensate pan and then being drained outside through a condensate drain line. This collection of moisture is a natural result of the evaporator coil absorbing heat from inside the house to cool the air.

This makes it sound like the air conditioner is also a dehumidifier. But this is not really the case. An air conditioner on its own usually isn’t sufficient to properly dehumidify a house. It can provide cooling to help you feel cooler, but when the relative humidity is above 60%, the AC won’t do much to lower it to comfortable levels.

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5 Things We Wish Everybody Knew About Air Conditioning

Monday, July 2nd, 2018

air-conditioning-collageThe air conditioning system is just a way of life. Homes are now constructed with central air conditioning in mind, and even vintage buildings can enjoy powerful air conditioning without using window units thanks to ductless mini splits.

But even though ACs are everywhere, they’re still poorly understood. Below is a list of five things we want people to know about air conditioning. These bits of knowledge makes it easier to care for an AC and to know when to call on trained HVAC professionals to fix and maintain them.

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The Overheating Air Conditioner: How to Prevent It

Monday, June 18th, 2018

thermometer-going-redAn overheating air conditioner is a tragic story. Your AC has only one goal: to make you feel cool and happy. Your AC will stop at nothing to achieve this, even if it means burning itself out in the process.

Overheating occurs when one or more of the AC’s components are not working the way they’re supposed to. The system will work extra to compensate for the damaged components, and that will lead to excess energy consumption followed by overheating. If you’re lucky, overheating will do no more than trip your circuit breaker. If you’re not so lucky, your AC will do its best before sadly breaking down.

Overheating can be prevented with regular maintenance and tune-ups. Below are some of the first services a professional HVAC contractor will perform to keep your AC from overheating.

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Electrical Problems in Your Air Conditioner Can Mean Big Trouble!

Monday, June 4th, 2018

HVAC-installer-strips-small-wiringAt ServiceMax, we offer a wide range of services for our customers. We’re both an electrical and HVAC contractor for Wilmette, IL and the rest of Chicagoland. This puts us in the special position of understanding the electrical issues that may affect an air conditioning system during the summer. That’s good news—because electrical malfunctions are the most common type in air conditioners. It only takes a few wiring glitches in your home’s AC to turn a pleasant summer day indoors into a sweatbox!

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The Tricks to Catching AC Repair Problems Early

Monday, May 21st, 2018

air-conditioning-manometer-pressure-refrigerantAs you get ready for the summer weather that’s on its way, you’ll want to make sure your residential air conditioning system is prepared to handle the heat. The best way to do this is to arrange for a system tune-up and inspection with our qualified professionals. We offer superb service for air conditioning and heating in Highland Park, IL, and that includes routine maintenance for both. Our MAX Comfort Plan will help your air conditioner avoid the majority of possible repair problems and prevent breakdowns by 95%.

However, maintenance can’t stop all problems. As your air conditioner starts to operate for the season, there are a few tricks you can use to catch an early developing malfunction. That way you can have it fixed before the serious heat arrives.

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Spring HVAC Maintenance—Now Is the Time!

Monday, May 7th, 2018

air-conditioner-unit-being-repairedYou may already be looking ahead to your calendar toward the end of June and the official first day of summer. If you are, make sure that when you think of the coming summer you also think about handling the summer heat with an air conditioner in the best shape possible. If you haven’t arranged for professional maintenance for your air conditioner yet—the spring tune-up and inspection—now is definitely time to have it done!

If this is the first time you’ve heard about spring maintenance, we’re glad we got your attention. Find out more about this vital service below.

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Don’t Shut Down Your AC Yet if It Needs Repairs

Monday, October 9th, 2017

tools-on-ac-unitLast month we offered tips on how to shut down your air conditioning system at the end of the season so it’s in the best shape for next year. But since your air conditioner is probably still putting in days of work here in the early fall and it’s not yet time to shut it off completely, we want to warn you to keep a sharp watch for possible malfunctions. If your AC needs to have repairs, call our technicians right away to schedule service before you need to shut down the system for the coming winter weather.

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