AC Repair in Moscow, ID
If your air conditioner quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Latah County will get in touch.
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Moscow doesn't ask much of an air conditioner
Summer afternoons here top out around 79°F on average, so most homes don't run cooling hard or often. An air conditioner in Latah County spends most of the year sitting idle.
That idle time is its own problem. A unit that only starts up on the hottest days can sit through a wind storm, and Latah County has logged 25 damaging wind events over the past ten years. Wind that strong can knock the outdoor unit out of alignment or drive debris into the coil, and you won't notice until the next hot day when you turn it on and it doesn't cool the way it should.
- 79°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 2 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 25 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 Latah County, so the repair decision comes down to the unit's condition.
Estimates for a typical Latah County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Idaho 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.
Idaho requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
Idaho's HVAC Board licenses the contractor, not the job. That license covers every repair that contractor takes on, this one included, not a separate approval for this particular air conditioner.
Your air conditioner has a sealed refrigerant side, and any technician who opens it needs EPA Section 608 certification, a federal requirement that applies in every state. On a repair like this, the Idaho license accounts for the contractor and the federal certification accounts for the refrigerant work itself.
Sources: Idaho Legislature · Idaho Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- Usually it's low refrigerant or a dirty air filter choking off airflow across the coil. A clogged filter starves the evaporator coil of air, and the coil can ice over, which cuts cooling even though the fan still runs. Low refrigerant means a leak somewhere in the line, and that's not something to top off yourself since only a technician with EPA 608 certification can legally handle the refrigerant side. Check the filter first. If it's clean and air still isn't cold, the system needs a licensed contractor to find the leak or diagnose the compressor.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Most often the condensate drain line is clogged. Your AC pulls moisture out of the air and that water is supposed to drain out through a small line, but algae and debris build up inside it over time and back the water up into the house. A frozen evaporator coil that then thaws can also flood the drain pan faster than it can clear. Either way, shut the system off so it doesn't keep pushing water, and have a contractor clear the line or check the coil.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat and the breaker. Dead batteries or a thermostat set above room temperature will keep the system from starting, and a tripped breaker will do the same thing. If those check out, the problem is likely inside the unit, in the capacitor, the contactor, or the control board, and none of those are safe to test yourself with power running to the unit. A licensed HVAC contractor can trace it from there.