AC maintenance and tune-ups in Scarborough, Durham and the GTA
An air conditioner rarely fails all at once. It loses capacity gradually, over seasons, while still switching on when you ask it to — so the first thing most people notice is not a breakdown but longer run times and a bill that has crept up. An annual service is how you catch that before it becomes a repair.
Metropolitan Heating and Air Conditioning has serviced cooling equipment across Scarborough, Durham Region and the GTA since 1979, on all makes and models. Book by calling (416) 283-5698, Monday to Friday 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM.
How a system loses capacity without breaking
An air conditioner does not make cold. It moves heat, by evaporating refrigerant in the indoor coil and condensing it in the outdoor one. Anything that gets between the refrigerant and the air degrades that transfer.
A film of dust on the evaporator insulates it. Dirt matted into the condenser fins stops it rejecting heat, so head pressure climbs and the compressor works harder for less output. A loaded filter or a dust-caked blower wheel cuts airflow, which drops the amount of air the coil can treat at all. Each one on its own is small. Together they can cost a meaningful share of the capacity you paid for, and none of them trips a fault code.
A slow refrigerant leak behaves the same way at first — reduced output, longer cycles — until the charge drops far enough that the coil ices and the system stops cooling entirely.
Book it in the spring
Before the first sustained hot stretch, not during it. A weak capacitor found in April is a scheduled part swap; the same capacitor found in July is a system that has already quit. Spring is also when a winter's worth of leaf litter and grit is sitting in the condenser, waiting to be cleaned out before the unit has to work.
The tune-up, item by item
- Condenser and evaporator coils cleaned, which is the single largest lever on heat transfer.
- Filter inspected and replaced, and the filter size and type confirmed against what the system needs.
- Condensate pan and drain line cleared, and the trap checked — a blocked drain is the most common cause of water appearing near an indoor unit.
- Refrigerant pressures measured and compared against superheat and subcooling targets, so an incorrect charge is identified rather than masked.
- Capacitor tested and contactor inspected. Capacitors weaken measurably before they fail outright, and a pitted contactor is a visible warning.
- Electrical connections checked and tightened. Years of thermal cycling loosens terminals, and a loose terminal heats.
- Blower wheel and fan blades cleaned, and moving parts lubricated where the design calls for it.
- Thermostat calibration verified against measured temperature.
- A full cooling cycle observed, with the temperature split across the indoor coil measured — the reading that tells you what the system is actually delivering.
One further reason to keep it annual: most manufacturer warranties on the equipment itself require documented annual servicing. If your system is still inside its warranty term, a gap in that record can be the reason a compressor claim is refused. Keep the paperwork with the rest of the house documents.
What you control between visits
Change or wash the filter on the schedule the manufacturer specifies, and more often with pets or ongoing renovation dust. Keep the clearance the manufacturer specifies around the outdoor unit clear of shrubs, fencing and stored items. Leave supply and return registers unblocked — closing registers in unused rooms raises static pressure across the whole system rather than saving anything. If a new noise appears or the cycle pattern changes, note when it started; that detail shortens the next diagnosis considerably.
Related cooling services
Book a tune-up
Call (416) 283-5698 weekdays 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM, or request a booking. Licensed and insured, from our shop on Venture Drive in Scarborough since 1979.