AC Repair in Granada Hills, CA, for Valley Heat and Foothill Winds
“Installed the new AC quickly same day when mine broke on the hot summer day what a lifesaver!”
David Dorfman, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Google Review
What Granada Hills Summers Do to an Air Conditioner
- Months of 90-degree afternoons. The average daily high in Granada Hills is 92°F in July and 93°F in August, and heat waves go far beyond that. Woodland Hills, elsewhere in the Valley, reached 121°F on September 6, 2020. A compressor that runs from late morning into the evening wears hardest on the run capacitor and the condenser fan motor.
- Equipment in hot spaces. In a one-story ranch house, the furnace and indoor coil often sit in the attic, a hallway closet or the garage. An attic on a 95°F day is far hotter than the air outside, and the condensate drain from an attic unit is easy to forget until it clogs and a stain appears on the ceiling.
- Foothill wind, dust and ash. Granada Hills sits at the foot of the Santa Susana Mountains. Santa Ana winds carry leaves, grit and, in fire season, ash down from the hills and into the outdoor unit. A packed coil can’t release heat, so pressures climb, the compressor runs hotter, and the system trips or blows warm air.
When the Hills Burn, the Ash Lands on Your AC
Granada Hills has had wildfire at its northern edge more than once. The Sesnon Fire started on October 13, 2008 near Porter Ranch, burned 14,703 acres, and moved into Granada Hills, where evacuations were ordered near O’Melveny Park. The Saddleridge Fire started in Sylmar on October 10, 2019 during a Santa Ana wind event and burned 8,799 acres. Evacuation orders covered all of Granada Hills, and a home on Jolette Avenue was destroyed.
Ash doesn’t stop at the fire line. It drifts south across the neighborhood, coats outdoor coils and gets pulled into return filters. An AC that cooled fine last week can start falling behind in the days after a fire.
After smoke or ash, do these first
- Change the air filter once the smoke has cleared. A filter loaded with ash chokes the airflow, and low airflow can freeze the indoor coil.
- Shut the power off at the outdoor disconnect, then rinse loose ash off the outdoor coil with a garden hose on a gentle spray. Leave the pressure washer in the garage. It bends the fins.
- If the AC still blows warm air, short cycles or trips the breaker, call us. We clean the coil and check the pressures and the electrical parts, which tells us whether you need a cleaning or a repair.
Ranch homes, Eichlers and older equipment
Most of Granada Hills was built in one generation. About 5,000 people lived here in 1950, and the population grew by 1,000 percent by 1960. Marlborough Palms alone has 149 one-story homes, most built in 1957 and 1958. Balboa Highlands, built by Joseph Eichler from 1962 to 1964, is the only Eichler tract in Los Angeles County, with open atriums and floor-to-ceiling glass. Building continued north of Rinaldi Street in the 1970s. Homes of this age tend to share a few AC problems.
- Water on the ceiling below an attic unit usually means the condensate drain has clogged and the pan has overflowed. Turn the system off at the thermostat and call us. Drain line cleaning runs $265 – $395, and an overflow safety switch, which shuts the AC off before water reaches the ceiling, is $285.
- Rooms that won’t cool by late afternoon are common in homes with big west-facing windows or glass walls. Put in a clean filter and close the blinds on the sunny side. If the house still can’t reach the temperature you set, have us check the refrigerant charge and the indoor coil.
AC Repair Prices, Up Front
These are Reliable Heating and Air’s own prices for common Granada Hills repairs. Every repair starts with a diagnostic, and it’s a $0 diagnostic fee when you approve the repair.
| Repair | Our price |
|---|---|
| Condenser fan motor | $695 – $895 (standard motors; variable-speed priced separately) |
| Condensate drain line cleaning | $265 – $395 |
| Condensate overflow safety switch | $285 |
| Compressor | $3,200 – $4,800 |
You hear the price for your repair after the diagnosis and before any work begins.
Granada Hills is in the City of Los Angeles, so your power comes from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, not Edison. LADWP serves about 1.54 million electric customers and set its record peak demand, 6,502 megawatts, on August 31, 2017, in the middle of a heat wave. An AC with a dirty coil or a weak capacitor runs longer to do the same job, and the extra hours show up on your LADWP bill.
When a replacement is the better buy
A compressor repair runs $3,200 – $4,800, roughly a third of a complete heat pump replacement at $11,200 – $15,000. On an older system that has already needed several repairs, compare the two numbers before you decide. We give free replacement estimates, and if another company has already quoted you a new system, we’ll give you a free second opinion.
In Granada Hills, the permit for a replacement comes from the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety (LADBS), which requires a mechanical permit for any installation or modification of a heating or cooling system. We pull the permit and schedule the inspection. Your written replacement quote also includes Title 24 / HERS testing and removal and haul-away of the old equipment, and the estimate is free with no obligation. See AC installation in Granada Hills, and heat pump repair in Granada Hills.
What Happens When You Call About Your Granada Hills AC
Describe the problem
Diagnosis and the price
Cooling checked before we go
Granada Hills AC Repair Questions
The usual causes are a failed run capacitor, a condenser fan motor that has quit, an outdoor coil packed with dust or ash, or low refrigerant. Check that the filter is clean and the outdoor unit is running. If the fan outside isn’t spinning or the air stays warm, turn the system off and call us. A standard condenser fan motor runs $695 – $895. Variable-speed motors are priced separately.
Yes. We offer same-day service in Granada Hills, and we handle emergency repairs. After-hours and weekend service is offered too, so a breakdown on a Saturday in August doesn’t have to wait until Monday.
Every repair starts with a diagnostic, and there is a diagnostic fee. It’s a $0 diagnostic fee when you approve the repair, because the fee is credited toward the work. You hear the repair price after the diagnosis and before any work begins.
Repairs such as a capacitor, a fan motor or a drain cleaning generally don’t need a permit. Replacing the system does. Granada Hills is in the City of Los Angeles, so the permit comes from the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety (LADBS). On a replacement, we pull it and schedule the inspection.
Check it every month in summer and fall, and change it as soon as the smoke clears after a fire or a strong Santa Ana wind. Rinse the outdoor coil with a gentle hose spray while the power is off. Our maintenance plans include a tune-up before the heat arrives, when small problems are cheaper to catch.
Repair it when the fix is small and the system has been dependable. Look at replacement when the compressor has failed, when the system runs on R-22 and has a leak, or when you’ve paid for repairs several summers in a row. We’ll give you the repair price and a free replacement estimate so you can compare them side by side.
Get Your Granada Hills AC Cooling Again
Same-day service in Granada Hills. It’s a $0 diagnostic fee when you approve the repair, and you know the price before we start.
Call Reliable Heating and Air
(747) 222-6259
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