AC service cost — what you should pay for servicing, gas refill and repair

What a normal AC service includes

A standard service is cleaning. For a split AC that means washing the indoor coil and filters, flushing the drain tray and pipe, cleaning the blower, and washing the outdoor condenser. A jet (wet) service uses a pressure pump; a foam or deep service adds a chemical foam for coils that have not been cleaned in a long time. A dry service only cleans the filters and wipes the unit — cheaper, but it does little for cooling.

• Filters washed and dried
• Indoor coil cleaned (jet or foam)
• Drain tray and pipe flushed
• Outdoor unit washed
• Cooling, current and gas pressure checked

Why gas refilling is never 'part of the service'

An AC is a sealed system: it does not 'use up' gas. If the pressure is low, there is a leak, and topping it up without finding the leak means paying again in a few weeks. A good technician checks pressure first, looks for the leak (usually at the flare joints or the indoor coil), fixes it, and only then tops up or refills. A full refill after vacuuming the system costs more than a top-up because more gas goes in.

Repairs: diagnosis first, parts at cost

Not cooling, ice on the pipe, water dripping indoors, a tripping MCB or a loud outdoor unit are faults, not service problems. The usual culprits are a failed capacitor, a fan motor, a sensor, the PCB or — expensive and rare — the compressor. Ask for the old part to be shown and for the part's price before it is fitted.

How often to service an AC

Once a year before summer is the minimum. In hot, dusty cities where the AC runs for many hours a day, service it twice: before summer and after the monsoon. Between services, wash the filters every two weeks in peak season — it is free and keeps the power bill down.

Red flags

Most bad experiences follow the same pattern.

• Gas 'top-up' recommended without a pressure reading or leak check
• A part replaced without showing the old one or its price
• Advance payment demanded before any work
• A 'service' that takes ten minutes with no water used
• Prices that change after the technician arrives

Real price list (NiskuHelp, Lucknow)

The prices people pay on NiskuHelp in Lucknow today — each professional shows their own price before booking, and spare parts or materials are extra at actual cost.

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