Customer Story: A Leak and an HVAC Motor that Stopped Working

This may come as a shock to no one that lives in the Sacramento area, but it gets hot here. So hot, in fact, that a working air conditioner is not only about comfort – sometimes, it is about survival.

That wasn’t quite the case here, but earlier this summer, a customer called us with an urgent problem. It was expected to be 90+ degrees every day the upcoming week, and suddenly, their AC stopped working altogether. They did not know why, but the only clue they had was that their AC had been leaking water.

They called us needing someone quickly, before the heat wave. We sent one of our best technicians within 24 hours to their house to take a look. Sure enough, there were two issues at play. The first was that poor airflow was causing the coils to freeze, blocking water from flowing through the condensate drain line (the part of the drain that removes excess moisture/water from the HVAC unit). The second problem was that the clogged water ended up leaking into the HVAC itself, causing the HVAC motor to short circuit.

The solution to the frozen condensate drain line was an easier one. We just had to make sure the system received its standard tuneup:

• We washed off all the excess debris from the air conditioner coils.
• We replaced the filter, which had been clogged with dog hair.
• We also removed a cap that another HVAC company had placed on the condensate drain line that was preventing air flow.

We then had to replace the HVAC motor. It wasn’t the cheapest part, but this customer was a part of our club program, so they received a hefty discount. The customer asked if they could shop around for better prices, which they did, but they quickly found that we were about 25% less than all the local competitors.

Although we did not have the motor on hand, we were able locate it and put a rush order on it so that we could replace the motor as soon as possible. Once replaced, the AC actually worked better than before, indicating that the water from the condensate line may have already caused some issues in the past. Since then, they’ve experienced neither problem, as the AC continues to work well and there have been no leaks.

Problem solving is a big part of the HVAC world, and even with regular tuneups, there can be issues that occur. We will always do our best to make sure that they are dealt with quickly and effectively, so that you do not have to stress about your HVAC or your comfort. Call us today if you need help.