AC Repair in Cambridge, Ontario

Most air conditioning repairs in Cambridge involve failed capacitors and contactors, refrigerant leaks, frozen indoor coils, dirty outdoor coils and blocked condensate drains. Cambridge's mix of very old and fairly new homes means two quite different sets of problems.

Older homes in Galt, Preston and Hespeler. Central air in these houses was almost always added long after they were built, often onto heating ducts with no upstairs returns. Restricted airflow freezes the indoor coil, and the system runs all afternoon without cooling the second floor. Some homes have condensers squeezed into narrow side yards between older houses, where they recirculate their own hot air.

Postwar to 1980s houses. In East Galt, Silver Heights and similar areas, many homes are on their second air conditioner. Some of these still run on R-22 refrigerant, which has been phased out in Canada. A leak on an R-22 system is expensive to fix and often signals it's time to replace.

Fiddlesticks and newer subdivisions. Original builder-grade condensers from the 1990s to 2010s are wearing out. Capacitors, contactors and fan motors fail first; coils corrode next. Units under decks or beside dryer vents clog with lint and debris.

River valley humidity. Cambridge summers can be muggy along the Grand and Speed. An oversized AC that cools quickly but shuts off before it removes moisture leaves the house cool and clammy.

Before you call:

• Thermostat on Cool, below room temperature, fresh batteries.
• Furnace and outdoor AC breakers on, plus the disconnect switch by the condenser.
• Furnace filter clean. A clogged filter is the top cause of frozen coils.
• Outdoor unit clear of leaves, grass and debris.
• Ice on the copper lines? Turn the AC off and run the fan until it thaws.

If the outdoor unit hums but the fan won't turn, switch it off and call us. Running it can damage the compressor.

Repairing makes sense for a younger AC with one failed part. Replacing makes more sense for an older unit needing a compressor or leaking R-22.

For older Cambridge homes with poor upstairs ducts, a ductless mini-split can cool the second floor directly, without opening up plaster or stone walls. For homes with good ducts, a cold-climate heat pump can replace the AC and handle most of your heating too. As Enbridge Gas customers, Cambridge homeowners can generally apply for Home Renovation Savings Program rebates on qualifying heat pumps; check current eligibility in our Ontario heat pump rebate guide. Electricity in Cambridge comes from GrandBridge Energy, and Save on Energy programs like Peak Perks apply too; check current terms.

If your furnace is also getting old, see our Cambridge furnace repair page.

Most AC breakdowns in Cambridge happen on the first hot, humid week of the summer, when a weak capacitor or clogged coil meets a full day of hard running.

In late spring, run the AC for 15 minutes and make sure the outdoor fan spins and the air from the vents is clearly cooler. Clear the outdoor unit of leaves and debris. A spring AC tune-up adds a coil cleaning, electrical tests, refrigerant checks and a condensate drain flush.

We repair air conditioners and heat pumps in Galt, East Galt, West Galt, Preston, Hespeler, Blair, Fiddlesticks, Silver Heights and Saginaw. We install Lennox and York, and repair all common brands.

Read our AC repair service page for how a visit works, or visit our Cambridge HVAC page for everything else we do in the city.