AC problems
Refrigerant Leak Repair
Low on gas is never the diagnosis. It is the symptom, and the leak is the job.
An air conditioner does not use up refrigerant. It is a sealed loop, and if the charge is low, the gas got out somewhere. The commonest leak points on a Houston system are the evaporator coil, which corrodes in the humid air handler, the flare and brazed joints on the line set, and the Schrader valves at the service ports. Small leaks take a season to show; the system cools a little less each summer until it ices or stops.
The honest repair is to find the leak with a detector, dye or nitrogen test, fix it, pull a vacuum and recharge to the manufacturer's figure. The dishonest one is to add gas and leave, which works until next June and costs you the gas again. On an older system using a refrigerant that is being phased out, the price of the gas alone can make the repair-or-replace question real, and a good contractor will put both numbers in front of you.
In Texas, refrigerant handling requires a licensed contractor and technicians with EPA certification. That is not a formality; it is the difference between a sealed system and one that leaks again in a year.
What it looks like
- Cooling that has got a little worse each summer
- Ice on the copper line or the indoor coil
- A hissing sound at the indoor unit
- A system that has been "topped up" before
Whatever the problem turns out to be, the first step is the same: describe it, say where the house is, and one independent HVAC contractor working in your town contacts you to look at it. No charge for being connected, and no obligation once he has.
Where
Refrigerant Leak Repair across north Houston
Humble
Subdivisions from the seventies to the nineties, so a lot of systems on their second or third replacement, with attic air handlers and original ductwork.
Kingwood
Big two-storey houses from the eighties under full tree cover, with upstairs that runs hot and air handlers in attics that reach 140.
Porter
Fast-growing Montgomery County, with builder-grade systems in the new subdivisions and older country houses on their original equipment.
New Caney
New construction along 59 beside acreage in the pines, with long power runs and surge damage after every storm.
Splendora
Rural lots, manufactured homes and older houses, where package units and window units are as common as central systems.
Crosby
East Harris County, older subdivisions near the lake, open land and salt air, which eats condenser coils faster than anywhere inland.
Dayton
Liberty County, country HVAC: heat pumps on propane-free properties, long drives for the technician, and nobody local to call.
The Woodlands
The biggest HVAC market north of Houston: large houses, often two or three systems each, and covenants on where an outdoor unit can sit.
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