AC Repair in Hobbs, NM
Air conditioners here run from May through September. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Lea County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Five months of heat, hard on your AC every year
Your air conditioner in Lea County works from May through September, and on a 94°F afternoon it runs long stretches just to hold the house steady. That kind of run time wears on the compressor and the fan motor, the parts that carry the load hour after hour. When one of them starts to give out, you notice the air coming from the vents isn't as cold, or the unit runs and runs without catching up.
The hail here adds another way for a unit to fail. Lea County has seen 91 hail events over the past ten years, with stones up to 3 inches, and hail that size can bend the fins on the outdoor coil or crack the fan blade. Wind is the other risk. 127 damaging wind events in that same stretch means loose panels, bent housings, and debris thrown into the unit, any of which can knock it out of commission right when you need it most.
- 5 months
- May through September, your air conditioner is on duty
- 94°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 91 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 127 wind events
- in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new air conditioner would cut about $70 a year off cooling for a typical Lea County home.
Estimates for a typical Lea County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, New Mexico 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.
New Mexico requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The Construction Industries Division licenses the contractor, not the job. That license is tied to the business doing the work, and it stays in place across every job that contractor takes on, not just this one.
For this repair, that license is what stands behind the work. Because the job means opening the refrigerant side of the air conditioner, the technician also needs EPA Section 608 certification. That is a federal requirement in every state, separate from New Mexico's license. The state license accounts for the contractor. The federal certification accounts for anyone who handles refrigerant.
Source: New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- Most often the filter is clogged enough to choke off airflow, or the system is low on refrigerant from a leak somewhere in the coil or lines. A dirty outdoor coil can do the same thing, since it stops the system from shedding heat the way it needs to. With summer afternoons here hitting 94°F, a system that's low on refrigerant will struggle hard to keep up. A contractor can check the refrigerant charge and look for the leak, since that work means opening the sealed system and requires EPA 608 certification.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Water around your unit usually means the condensate drain line is clogged, so water backs up and finds another way out. It can also mean the coil has iced over from low refrigerant or poor airflow, and the water shows up once that ice melts. Check the filter first, since a dirty one restricts airflow enough to cause icing. If the line itself is blocked, a contractor can clear it.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat batteries and the breaker, since those are the two most common reasons a system won't respond at all. If those check out, the capacitor that starts the compressor or the fan motor may have failed. Given how often hail and wind hit Hobbs, a storm can also trip a breaker or damage the outdoor unit's power connection without leaving obvious damage. A licensed contractor can test the electrical components and confirm what's actually failed.