AC Repair

Most AC repairs in the Bay Area come back to the same short list: a failed capacitor, a worn contactor, a refrigerant leak, or a clogged condensate line. We show up with parts for all of them. We also bring Fieldpiece diagnostic gauges, so we read your system’s actual performance instead of guessing from symptoms.

What’s included:

• Full system inspection (indoor + outdoor units)
• Refrigerant pressure and temperature readings
• Electrical component testing (capacitor, contactor, relays)
• Airflow and condensate line inspection
• Written estimate before any repair work
• Common repairs completed same visit
• Performance logs saved for next visit comparison

Repair vs replace:

Repairs under $500 on a system under 12 years are almost always worth it; you’re buying years of life cheap. Repairs over $1,500 on a 15-plus-year system or one running R-22 refrigerant push the math toward replacement. We give you the numbers at the estimate so you can decide. We don’t pressure either way.

What typically goes wrong on Bay Area AC systems:

• Capacitors are the most common failure ($150 to $250 to replace). They degrade with heat and California summers age them faster than spec.
• Contactor pitting is next, especially on systems past 8 years.
• Refrigerant leaks on R-22 systems usually mean replacement is coming. Reclaimed R-22 runs $100 to $200 per pound and the system will leak again.
• Condensate clogs are common in coastal cities (San Francisco, Berkeley, Richmond) where humidity is higher.
• Control board failures happen on aging high-efficiency units. We don’t replace boards blindly. Most “bad board” calls are actually wiring or sensor issues.

Bay Area brand notes:

Older Bay Area homes most often run Trane, Carrier, Lennox, or York systems installed in the 1990s and early 2000s. We carry parts for all of them. Cooper & Hunter and Mitsubishi are common on newer ductless retrofits. We don’t push customers to switch brands. We fix what you have when fixing makes sense.