AC Maintenance in Covington, KY
Air conditioners here run from June through September, so May is the time for a tune-up. Tell us about your system, and a licensed contractor who covers Kenton County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Four months of hard running in Kenton County heat
Your air conditioner in Covington gets four months a year to do its job, June through September, and it does it against afternoons that average 85°F. That is a short season with no easy days in it. The compressor runs long hours to hold the house steady, and the parts that start it and cool it take that load every one of those days.
Kenton County also sees its share of hail and wind, eleven hail events and 67 damaging wind events over the past ten years. A tune-up checks the outdoor unit for bent fins and a coil that is not moving air the way it should, the kind of damage that sits there quietly until the system is working hardest to keep up.
- 4 months
- June through September, your air conditioner is on duty
- 85°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 11 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 67 wind events
- in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
Book your AC tune-up in May, before homes here start needing cooling in June.
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
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- Aug
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- Dec
A tune-up checks the refrigerant charge, cleans the coils, tests the capacitor and tightens the electrical connections.
Kentucky requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The state tested this contractor before handing out that license, and the Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction keeps a record of it. That license belongs to the contractor, not to any single job. It stands behind every visit they make, not just this one.
A tune-up or filter check does not usually mean touching the refrigerant. But if the technician opens that side of your air conditioner, checking the charge or fixing a leak, federal law requires them to hold EPA Section 608 certification, no matter what state they work in. That certification and the state license cover two different things. One says the state has tested and recorded this contractor. The other says a federal rule was followed on the day they worked on your refrigerant.
Sources: Kentucky Legislative Research Commission · Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction
- What does AC maintenance include?
- A technician checks refrigerant pressure, cleans the condenser coil, and tests the capacitor and contactor. They also check the blower motor, inspect the ductwork for obvious leaks, and change or check the filter. On the electrical side, they tighten connections and check that the system is drawing the right amperage. Anyone opening the refrigerant lines to check pressure has to hold EPA Section 608 certification, so this part of the job is not optional paperwork, it is federal law.
- How often does an air conditioner need maintenance?
- Once a year, before the season it has to work hardest. Here that means getting it looked at before June, since the system runs from June through September with afternoons averaging 85°F. A yearly check catches a weak capacitor or a dirty coil before it fails on a hot afternoon instead of during a mild one.
- Is AC maintenance worth it?
- Yes, because most of what shortens an air conditioner's life shows up small before it shows up broken. A coil that is losing airflow, a capacitor that is starting to weaken, a refrigerant charge that has dropped, these all get caught in an annual check. Hail and wind matter here too. The area has seen 11 hail events and 67 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and a bent fin or a dented cabinet from a storm is easy to miss until the unit is already struggling to keep up during the June through September stretch.