Air conditioners rely on refrigerant to cool the air in your Austin, TX home

As air conditioning technology improves, so are older types of refrigerant phased out in favor of newer, more efficient blends of refrigerant.

As we climb into the 90s for another hot summer season, you may start to hear something odd coming from your air conditioner. You know your air conditioner best, so you know what sounds normal and what doesn’t. When you start to hear something not normal, but your AC is still running ok, it can be tempting to ignore it. But in our experience, noises don’t usually go away on their own, and can often lead to a bigger problem. Your air conditioner in Austin isn’t a luxury at this time of year; it’s a necessity, so if you think you may be hearing something odd with your air conditioner, call the technicians you can trust: Intelligent Air Services.

SOUNDS THAT CAN INDICATE PROBLEMS

Not all sounds coming from your air conditioner means something is wrong, but there are normal working sounds and sounds that mean trouble is brewing. Here are some of the common noises your AC can make when something is off:

• Clunking or Banging – clunking and/or banging can indicate that a fan blade has become bent or loose, and is banging into parts of your air conditioner as it spins. It’s important to repair a bent or loose fan blade because it can cause damage to other parts of the system.
• Hissing Noise – a hissing noise can indicate the presence of a refrigerant leak. The refrigerant in your system is under pressure through much of the heating and cooling process, so if a leak has developed, you may hear a hissing noise and see bubbling around the area in which the leak has emanated.
• Screeching Noise – a screeching noise can mean that the pressure in your compressor is too high. This can be a potentially dangerous situation, so if you hear screeching coming from your air conditioner, turn it off immediately and call an expert for help.
• Whistling Sounds from Vents – while it’s normal to hear a “whoosh” sound from your vents, a whistling sound can indicate that the seals in your ductwork have begun to fail and that air is escaping. Faulty ductwork can be responsible for up to 30% of air loss in an air conditioning system, so if you are hearing a whistling sound, it is best to have your ductwork inspected.

DON’T IGNORE THAT SOUND

Odd sounds are one of the signs that something in your air conditioning system may be in need of repair, so it’s best not to ignore it. Your air conditioner has already started working for the busy summer season, and if it’s stressed, it could lead to problems. If you are hearing something that just doesn’t seem right, call Intelligent Air Services today and schedule service for your air conditioner in Buda, TX.