Repair Specialists Report Increase In AC Breakdowns During Heat Wave

NEWBURY PARK (CBSLA.com) — Air conditioning specialists have seen an increase in AC breakdowns since the beginning of the excessive heat wave.

Jesse Porter from Aladdin Air Conditioning and Heating in Newbury Park said he's been working eight jobs a day, seven days a week.

"This summer has been pretty mild up until last week," Porter said. "All of a sudden it got really hot. Now we're starting to see all these breakdowns that probably would've been spread out over a month or two… all in a week."

Porter said to avoid a meltdown and breakdown in an air conditioning system, the maintenance is the key.

He said repairing an older AC with leaky equipment will cost more this summer because the federal government is phasing out certain ozone-depleting refrigerants, commonly called freon. Most AC's made before 2010 use the coolant.

"The cost of refrigerants has doubled this year and it's because they're phasing out R22 and moving towards 410A," he said.

Porter said it may cost less to buy a new air conditioner if a person has an older AC that keeps breaking down.