This summer you don’t want to face a broken air conditioning system and a scramble to get emergency help out to fix it. We are happy to provide you with emergency air conditioning repair in Burlington, VT whenever you need it—it’s a big part of our job. But we’re aware that most homeowners only want to resort to 24-hour emergency services when it’s absolutely necessary.
So in this post, we’re going to look at a few standard troubleshooting checks and steps to take when you have a major air conditioning problem. In some situations, what seems like a malfunctioning air conditioner is only a minor issue you can correct yourself without needing tools or training. (Please don’t attempt any “troubleshooting” that involves using a tool kit or opening up the air conditioner’s cabinets!) Below we’ve listed what you can do about a broken air conditioner before calling for repairs.

Spring arrived a few days earlier on the calendar this year. But that’s only the “official” first day of spring, a point in the Earth’s journey around the Sun. Our local weather doesn’t obey the calendar, and the cold weather blows through here sometimes until May. But spring is still the season of air conditioning tune-ups and inspections, no matter what the weather is like. Without fail, the summer heat will arrive, and you’ll want your air conditioning system in peak shape to handle it.
If the “drain snake” you’re thinking of when you ask this question is a hand-cranked drain auger purchased from a store, then it might be enough to take care of a clog in a sink or shower drain. It isn’t a total solution, however, and in many cases it provides only a brief fix and will leave you with a clogged up drain only a few weeks later—or less.
If you have a furnace in your house that’s more than 15 or even 20 years old, any replacement system will have a higher energy efficiency rating. This because standard for gas furnaces have changed dramatically over two decades, and even the new mid-efficiency models have a higher standard than the mid-efficiency models at the start of the 21st century.
The winter weather isn’t done with us, but the second half of the season is a good time to consider how well your home’s furnace has held up. This may be the last winter it can perform up to expectations. Or it may already have fallen behind this season. If you’ve spent more on
You don’t want mold anywhere in your house. Mold looks awful, creates terrible odors, destroys building material like drywall, and can release toxic spores. (Black mold, the most common type of mold due to water damage, is the most dangerous.) Unfortunately, a number of common plumbing issues can lead to mold. The faster you call for
What sort of home appliance do you think is most likely to corrode? You’ll probably think of the water heater, or shower heads and other water-using fixtures. You probably don’t think about your gas furnace rusting. It doesn’t use water to warm your house, after all. It applies heat to the air through a metal heat exchanger that contains hot combustion gas.
When heating season starts (a.k.a. “winter”), your home’s furnace will get down to steady work. That means you’ll have the semi-regular job of keeping an eye on it. This isn’t an intense job, only a reminder to keep your senses open to any of the signs the furnace is in trouble—and to remember to change the furnace filter on a regular schedule.
Do you know what the busiest day of year is for professional plumbers? The day after Thanksgiving. The toughest shopping day of the year is also when many homeowners discover they’ve got a plumbing nightmare. This makes sense: the house is packed with guests—more than a home experiences during the December holidays, most likely—and the kitchen plumbing, especially the sink and garbage disposal, are under assault from food preparation. Most parts of the plumbing get used to their fullest, increasing the chances that something will go wrong.
How do you keep your home toasty during the cold winters in Vermont and New York? The majority of homes use natural gas furnaces, but there are many that rely on boilers, electric furnaces, in-floor radiant systems, heat pumps, and dual fuel systems. Our heating technicians work with all these types of
