AC Repair in Sturgis, SD
Air conditioners here run from June through August. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Meade County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Three months of hard running, and hail besides
Your air conditioner in Sturgis has a short season and a hard one. June through August, with afternoons averaging 84°F, it runs close to flat out to keep up. That kind of steady load wears on the compressor and the fan motor, the parts doing the work every one of those days.
Meade County has also seen 298 hail events and 373 damaging wind events over the past ten years, with hail up to 4.5 inches. Hail that size dents or cracks the fins on your outdoor unit and can bend the coil behind them. A damaged coil can't shed heat the way it should, and you notice it as warm air inside on a hot afternoon, or a system that runs and runs without catching up.
- 3 months
- June through August, your air conditioner is on duty
- 84°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 298 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 373 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 Meade County, so the repair decision comes down to the unit's condition.
Estimates for a typical Meade County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, South Dakota 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 South Dakota, HVAC licensing for homes is left to the cities and towns.
South Dakota does not license HVAC contractors at the state level. That decision is left to each city and town, so whether this job needs a license depends on where the house sits, not on any state test or state record.
Repairing an air conditioner means working on the refrigerant side of the system, and that part of the job falls under federal rule no matter where the house is. Any technician who opens that side of the system has to hold EPA Section 608 certification. It is not a local license and it does not test general repair skill, but it is the one credential that applies to this job here regardless of what the town does or does not require.
Source: South Dakota Legislature
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- The most common reason is a dirty air filter choking off airflow across the coil. When that happens the coil can ice over, and you get weak or warm air even though the unit is running. Low refrigerant from a leak is another common cause, but that's not something to test yourself since it means opening the sealed system. Check the filter first, and if it's clean, the problem is likely inside the system and needs a contractor with EPA 608 certification to open it up.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Usually the condensate drain line is clogged. Your AC pulls a lot of moisture out of summer air, that water is supposed to run out through a drain line, and when the line clogs with algae or debris, the water backs up and finds its way out somewhere it shouldn't. A frozen coil that's now thawing can cause the same thing, so if you see ice on the lines or coil, turn the system off and let it thaw before calling anyone out.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat and the breaker. Make sure the thermostat is set to cool and below room temperature, and check that the breaker for the outdoor unit hasn't tripped. If both of those check out and it still won't start, the capacitor that gets the compressor or fan motor running may have failed, which is a common reason an AC won't turn on at all. That's a repair for a licensed contractor, and in Sturgis licensing is handled by the city rather than the state, so check that whoever you call is licensed to work here.