AC Repair in Crystal Lake, IL
Air conditioners here run from June through August. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers McHenry County will get in touch.
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Three months of heat, then storms on top of it
Crystal Lake only asks for cooling from June through August, but those three months carry the load for the whole year. Afternoons average 81°F, and that steady heat keeps a condenser running long hours day after day. Capacitors and contactors take the wear from that, and one of the first signs is a unit that short cycles or won't start on the hottest afternoons.
McHenry County has also seen 45 hail events and 140 damaging wind events over the past ten years, with hail up to 2.75 inches. Hail that size bends the thin aluminum fins on a condenser coil, and a bent-up coil can't shed heat the way it should. After a storm like that, the system may still run, but it runs harder than it needs to.
- 3 months
- June through August, your air conditioner is on duty
- 81°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 45 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 140 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 McHenry County, so the repair decision comes down to the unit's condition.
Estimates for a typical McHenry County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Illinois 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.
In Illinois, HVAC licensing for homes is left to the cities and towns.
In McHenry County, whatever rule applies comes from the city or village where the house sits, not from the state. Some towns require HVAC contractors to register or hold a local license. Others have no rule at all. There is no state board behind any of it, so what protection exists here depends on the address.
What does not depend on address is the refrigerant work. Any technician who opens the refrigerant side of your air conditioner, to recover it, recharge it, or fix a leak, has to hold EPA Section 608 certification. That is a federal rule and it holds in every town in the county, whether or not that town licenses HVAC contractors at all.
Source: Illinois General Assembly
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- The most common reason is a dirty air filter choking off airflow across the coil. When air can't move past it, the coil can ice over and the air coming out of your vents turns warm or weak. Low refrigerant from a leak causes the same thing, and so does a failing compressor. A contractor can tell which one you have by checking the filter first, then the coil and refrigerant charge.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Your AC makes water as it cools the air, and that water normally drains outside through a condensate line. When that line clogs with dirt or algae, the water backs up and drips inside instead, often near the indoor unit or through the ceiling below it. A frozen coil that then thaws will also flood the drain pan faster than it can drain. Either way, a contractor needs to clear the line or find why the coil froze.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with your thermostat. Check that it has power, the batteries are good, and it's set to cool below the room temperature. If the thermostat looks fine, check your breaker panel, since a tripped breaker will shut the whole unit down. Crystal Lake sees plenty of summer storms, and power surges or outages during one can trip a breaker or a safety switch on the outdoor unit. If the breaker is fine and it still won't start, a contractor will need to check the capacitor and the electrical connections at the unit.