AC Repair in Zephyrhills, FL

Zephyrhills is an incorporated city in east Pasco County, with its own city government. The U.S. Census Bureau lists it with a little under 10 square miles of land.

A University of Florida GeoPlan Center report, built on Census American Community Survey estimates for 2017 to 2021, counts 8,268 housing units in the city. Of those, 3,952 are single-family homes and 2,938 are mobile homes. Another 1,352 are in multi-family buildings. The same report counted 1,344 mobile home units in 1990, so that part of the housing stock has more than doubled.

Why it matters when the AC stops:

• Say what kind of home it is. When you call, tell us whether the home is site-built or a manufactured or mobile home, and where the indoor unit sits. It helps the technician come prepared. Our guide to mobile home air conditioning explains the basics.
• Homes that sit empty. The report counted 1,603 vacant units. If your home is closed up for weeks at a time, a problem such as a blocked drain can go on with nobody there to notice it.

For a broader look at HVAC service in the city, see our Zephyrhills HVAC page.

These are patterns that follow from the local climate, not statistics from our service calls.

A wet summer on the rain gauge

NOAA keeps a rain gauge station named Zephyrhills 0.9 ENE. Its 1991 to 2020 normals show 8.81 inches of rain in June, 9.50 in July and 9.37 in August. Those three months bring 27.68 of the station's 56.16 inches a year. The National Weather Service says the rainy season runs from May 25 to October 10 for West Central Florida outside Southwest Florida, with warm, humid conditions and frequent showers and thunderstorms.

Hot days and warm nights

NOAA's Saint Leo station, north-west of the city, has temperature normals. Its normal July high is 90.1°F, its normal July low is 72.6°F, and it averages about 114 days a year at 90°F or above.

What that does to the drain

An air conditioner pulls water out of the air as it cools, and that water runs from a pan under the indoor coil out through a drain line. ENERGY STAR says a plugged drain can cause water damage in the house and affect indoor humidity levels. Trane, an equipment maker, says drain lines and pans can clog with dirt, debris, mold growth or spider webs. If your system has an overflow switch, Trane says that when the switch detects a possible overflow, it shuts down the outdoor compressor, the condenser fan and the indoor supply fan. Trane says that if you have a condensate drain switch and the system suddenly shuts off in the heat of the day, a clogged condensate line or pan may be to blame. Our guide to an AC leaking water covers the signs.

These need no tools and no panels opened. Stop at any step that feels unsafe.

1. Thermostat. Confirm it is set to Cool, below the room temperature, with the fan on Auto. Replace the batteries if the screen is faint or blank. ENERGY STAR lists checking thermostat settings as part of routine care.
2. Filter. ENERGY STAR says to inspect, clean or change central air filters once a month, and that a dirty filter can damage equipment and lead to early failure.
3. Outdoor unit. With the system switched off, pull leaves, grass and storm debris away from the cabinet by hand. Do not hose, comb or pry at the metal fins.
4. Drain line. Look at the pan under the indoor unit and at the end of the drain line outside. If the pan holds water or the overflow switch has shut the system off, leave it off.
5. Ice. Frost or ice on the copper lines or the indoor coil means turn cooling off and call.

Leave the rest to a licensed contractor. Do not open the outdoor unit's electrical panel, touch the capacitor (the part that helps the motors start) or add refrigerant (the fluid that carries heat out of the house). For more, see what to do when the AC will not turn on.

ENERGY STAR's maintenance checklist includes tightening electrical connections and measuring voltage and current on motors. It also covers checking the controls and the starting cycle, so the system starts, runs and shuts off properly. The refrigerant level is checked and adjusted if needed. Blume has EPA Section 608 certified technicians, the federal refrigerant-handling credential.

Power and storms

The National Weather Service says frequent lightning comes with the rainy season, from the severe storms of late May and June through the peak from July to early September. If the AC quit during a storm while the rest of the house kept power, tell the technician.

If the whole house is dark, call your electric utility first. The Pasco Economic Development Council says Duke Energy primarily serves the Zephyrhills area. Withlacoochee River Electric Cooperative also serves customers in Pasco County, so check which name is on your bill.

You get a written, upfront price before any work starts.

Inside the city limits, permits come from the city. The City of Zephyrhills Building/Code Enforcement Department issues residential permits to property owners in the city. Its permitting page lists A/C, with a contract, among the same-day, over-the-counter permits.

The city also has an HVAC change-out sheet for contractors. It asks for pictures of:

• the front of the home with the address;
• the old air handler (the indoor unit) and where it sat;
• the old condenser and where it sat;
• the new equipment, showing its data plates;
• the wire sizes and breaker sizes;
• any ductwork repair.

The sheet also lists a permit and duct seal affidavit, and says the HVAC affidavit must be emailed to the building department. For a homeowner, that means a replacement in Zephyrhills is documented down to the wiring and the ducts. Our Florida HVAC permit guide explains why permits matter to you as the owner.

Blume lays out repair and replacement options side by side and does not sell equipment a building does not need.

When replacement is the answer, Blume sizes the system with an ACCA Manual J load calculation and Manual S equipment selection, instead of copying the old unit's size. New equipment is commissioned with measured static pressure, airflow and refrigerant charge. Financing is available through Synchrony Bank.

For the decision itself, see how to decide between AC repair and replacement. Elsewhere in Pasco County, we also have a page on AC repair in Land O' Lakes.

Blume Mechanical Service, LLC is a Class A licensed Florida air conditioning contractor (license CAC-1822618) and is fully insured. We are brand-agnostic and service all major manufacturers' equipment. Our office is at 2840 West Bay Drive #114, Belleair Bluffs, FL 33770, and our core service area is Pinellas, Hillsborough and Pasco counties.

What to have ready when you call

• Whether the home is site-built or a manufactured or mobile home.
• Where the indoor unit sits: a closet, the garage, the attic or outside.
• What the thermostat is set to and what it reads.
• Whether the outdoor unit and the indoor fan are running.
• Any water in the pan, ice, burning smell or unusual noise.
• Whether the AC stopped during a storm, and whether the rest of the house has power.