Regular AC maintenance repair costs between £60 and £160. Extended service contracts range from £160 to £400 and cover the entire HVAC system, including heating and cooling. Expect to pay £40 to £120 per hour for an HVAC expert for repairs not part of a standard service. A service call typically entails cleaning the condenser and doing a series of inspections to ensure your system operates properly. Evaporator coil and duct cleaning generally are not included in standard AC tune-ups. The cost of recharging AC refrigerants ranges between £80 and £275. This isn’t something you’ll need to do every year, and it’s typically only if there’s a leak or a part has to be changed. AC service call prices start at £40 for an HVAC professional to come to your home. A complete HVAC system check, including your ducting and furnace, would cost between £160 and £360.

The advantages of air conditioning service include increased unit efficiency and early detection of problems, saving you money in the long term. You can’t keep a home, office restaurant, or gym air conditioner running on its own. Due to the complexity of elements within the unit, you’ll need to hire a professional to service your AC.

For example, a 9000 BTU/2.6KW ac using 900 watts of power can cost 0.22p to run in an hour, while a ducted air conditioner will cost £1.22 (according to the current standard electricity tariff UK (24.5p/kWh) from April 1 to June 30, 2024)

Air conditioners can smell for many reasons, including dirty parts, refrigerant leaks, Mold, and electrical faults. Here are some common smells and their causes:

• Musty or moldy: Dirty or clogged air filters can trap dust, hair, and allergens, which can lead to bacteria growth and a musty smell. Dirty drain pans or evaporator coils can also cause this smell.
• Burning: This smell could be caused by overheating or burning components or using the air conditioner after a long period of inactivity. Burning smells should not be ignored, and you should hire a professional to fix an overheating AC unit.
• Gas or rotten eggs: This smell could be a sign of a gas leak or a dead animal in the system.
• Sweet, chemical Odor: This smell could be a sign of a refrigerant leak.
• Ammonia-like: This smell could indicate mycotoxins, which are released by large Mold colonies, or a coolant leak.
• Gunpowder: This smell could indicate a shorted-out electrical component, such as a fan, compressor, or evaporator coil. If you smell this, you should

To fix bad smells, you can try cleaning the unit and replacing damaged parts. For example, you can try: Emptying and cleaning the drain pan, Cleaning the air conditioner filters, and cleaning the evaporator coil.

You can also try applying a mild detergent to the drain pan to get rid of odor-causing bacteria. To check that the pan drains well, pour a small amount of water over it and make sure it flows out through the drain line.