When your air conditioner’s giving you trouble and you need professional repair, your first thought is most likely, “How much is this going to cost me?” Well, it all depends on exactly what is wrong with your air conditioner. But we can say that the average price for an AC repair in Upstate South Carolina is nearly $650, with the average price being $300-$500.

Some factors that might affect the cost of your AC repair include:

• The type of warranty you have if you still have warranty left?

• The contractor’s service call or diagnostic charge?

• Whether the contractor charges hourly or flat-fee pricing?

• Age of the air conditioner, have you been doing routine maintenance is it important?

What’s wrong with the AC? Let’s take a closer look at these factors and how they affect the cost.

Factors that affect the cost of an AC repair

Warranty - 3 types of HVAC warranties can help lower the cost of your AC repair:

1. Labor warranty. Your labor warranty covers the cost of labor to repair your AC. If the part needing repair was installed less than a year ago, there is a good chance that the installer will repair or replace the part at no charge. Of course, the length of your labor warranty varies from contractor to contractor. Not sure if your labor warranty is still valid? Just call and ask the contractor who installed the system/part.

2. Parts warranty. Depending on the manufacturer, the cost of some parts of your AC system may be covered under warranty for anywhere from 1 to 10 years. Most manufacturer websites include a warranty “lookup” system that makes it easy for you to check on the status of your parts warranty or if you have the warranty paperwork it will show the time frame of your warranty coverage. Click here to look up Trane warranty. The other option is a reputable contractor can call to find out for you. 

3. Extended warranty. An Extended warranty has a few options when you want a little additional coverage on your new system or your system that is less than 2 years old. Parts only warranty is just that it covers only parts and you choose the length of the warranty 5 years, 10 years. Labor only warranty is a popular choice, this allows a customer that has a 10 year part warranty to add 10 years of labor warranty. The final choice is Parts and Labor coverage this gives you additional coverage on both parts and labor. This option is very beneficial if you just bought a house and the warranty was non-transferable from the previous owner to the new homeowner and the system is only a year or two old. If you have any extended warranty left that will help alleviate the cost out of pocket. Your contractor can call the warranty company to verify warranty coverage.

Service call charge - A service call charge, sometimes called a “diagnostic fee” or a “trip charge “is the price you’ll pay just to have a professional come to your home and inspect your system. Service charges can range anywhere from $30 to over $100.

1. Depending on the contractor, that service charge may get dropped if you choose to have them repair your system, or if you have a maintenance with them there is usually rewards / discounts for being a maintenance customer.

Hourly vs. Flat Rate Pricing - Depending on the contractor you choose, you may end up paying a flat rate fee for your repair or you may pay an hourly rate. Here’s a closer look at flat rate vs hourly pricing:

1. Flat Rate - Let’s say you agree to a $250 flat rate fee and the job takes 2 hours; you’re paying $125 an hour. But if that same job ends up taking 4 hours due to unforeseen circumstances, you only paid $62.50 an hour.

2. Hourly - Now let’s say that you agreed to paying $100 per hour for the same job and it takes 2 hours. That means you end up paying $200 and when all is said and done, you fared better paying per hour. But if that same job ends up taking 4 hours, you pay $400 instead of the flat fee of $250.

So, it really depends on the complexity of the job what you end up paying overall. Whatever payment your contractor chooses, be sure that they offer a written contract before they begin any work and you sign off and approve it.

Age of the air conditioner - If your AC system is older, you may end up paying more if the parts needed for the repair are hard to find. On the other hand, if your AC is newer, the parts needed for the repair are likely to be more energy-efficient and therefore more expensive.

What is wrong with the AC - Ultimately, the largest price factor is what’s wrong with your system. To help you get a better understanding of what you’ll end up paying, we’ve included the price ranges of some of the more common AC repairs below.

Refrigerant leak - Price range: $200 to over $1,600

The steps in an AC refrigerant leak repair include:

1. Detecting and locating leak

2. Repairing the leak

3. Recharging refrigerant

4. The extent of the leak determines how much you’ll pay. Small, easy-to-locate leaks will cost less while larger leaks that require evaporator coil replacement will cost a lot more.

5. But the type of refrigerant also plays a huge role in how much you’ll pay to repair your leak. If your system uses the older refrigerant, R-22, expect to pay a lot of money to recharge your system. Since R-22 was phased out by the EPA back in 2010, you can expect to pay up to $224/pound for R-22 refrigerant (or more).

Compressor replacement - Price range: $1,800 to over $2,800

Replacing a bad compressor can get pricey really fast. That’s because the compressor is the “heart” of your entire AC system. Without it, your system would never be able to produce cool air.

Because of the high price tag, many homeowners opt to just replace the entire outdoor system when they’re faced with a compressor replacement. If you need to replace your AC compressor but aren’t sure if you should replace just the compressor or the entire AC, just remember to weigh out the age of the system, the cost of the repair and how long that part is warrantied for. If you choose to replace the compressor and the system is 12 years old there is a high percentage chance that another large part can fail after you have already spent almost $3,000 on a new compressor. A lot to weigh out and think about.

Condenser fan motor - Price: $350 to over $560

If your outdoor unit’s fan goes out or runs too slow, you’ll want to repair that as soon as possible. If left un-repaired, a bad condenser fan can quickly lead to more costly compressor problems.

Condensate pump replacement - Price: $135 to $200+

Your air conditioner not only cools your home’s air, it also dehumidifies it. And your condensate pump is responsible for draining away the moisture from the de-humidification process. So, when this part goes bad, you could end up with costly water damage if you wait too long to repair a condensate pump.

Need specific pricing for your AC repair? - If you need specific pricing on your repair, just contact us.

We’ll send a professional over to inspect your system and give you an estimate for the repair.

Call Today!

WE HEAT THE COOL AND COOL THE HEAT