Massachusetts HVAC Pros
An outdoor air conditioning condenser unit installed beside the exterior wall of a blue vinyl-sided house at sunset.

AC Repair in Nantucket, MA

Air conditioners here run from July through August. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Nantucket County will get in touch.

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It takes about a minute.

Step 1 of 3: Equipment
An outdoor air conditioning condenser unit positioned on a concrete pad next to a blue-sided house, surrounded by green shrubs and flowering hydrangeas at sunset.

A short season, then months of sitting still

Your air conditioner in Nantucket County works only two months a year, July and August, with afternoons averaging 74°F. That is a light load, but it comes with its own problem. A system that sits unused for ten months can develop a stuck contactor or a refrigerant leak that nobody notices until the first warm day, when you turn it on and it does not cool.

The county has recorded 60 damaging wind events over the past ten years. Wind that strong can bend the fins on an outdoor unit or knock loose a panel, and either one shows up as weak airflow or a system that trips off on its own.

2 months
July through August, your air conditioner is on duty
74°F
the average summer afternoon it cools against
1 hail events
in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
60 wind events
in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
Isometric cutaway illustration of a single-story house showing interior rooms, ceiling ductwork, an indoor air handler, and an outdoor condenser unit connected by lines, in gray and white tones on a white background.
Your air conditioner works hardest from July through August.

NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals

Overhead view of a gray residential air conditioning condenser unit mounted on a concrete pad beside a house with asphalt shingle roofing.

A new air conditioner would save little on running costs in Nantucket County, so the repair decision comes down to the unit's condition.

  • A new one at the federal minimum, 13.4 SEER2$220 a year
  • An older air conditioner$240 a year

Estimates for a typical Nantucket County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Massachusetts 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.

Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
Most often the filter is clogged and starving the system of airflow, or the refrigerant level is low from a leak. A dirty outdoor coil can cause the same problem by keeping the system from shedding heat. If the air coming out is warm rather than weak, a contractor needs to check the refrigerant charge, since running it low can damage the compressor.
Why is my AC leaking water?
The condensate drain line is probably clogged, and water is backing up instead of draining outside. Algae and dust build up in that line over a cooling season and block it. A frozen evaporator coil will also cause a leak once it thaws, so if the system has been running with warm air coming out beforehand, that is likely the cause.
Why won't my AC turn on?
Check the thermostat first, since dead batteries or a setting bumped off cool will stop the system before it ever starts. A tripped breaker is the next thing to look at. If power is reaching the unit and it still won't start, the capacitor or the contactor has likely failed, and those need a contractor to test and replace.
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