Most people book an AC service in May, when it has already failed. Booking in February or March costs the same and buys you a working summer — provided the service is a real one and not a fifteen-minute wash and go.
There is a pattern to AC work in Rohtas that has not changed in years. Nobody thinks about the AC in January. In the first genuinely hot week of April the switch goes on, the machine either wheezes or does nothing, and then every technician in Sasaram is booked for a fortnight.
The service itself is the same job in March as it is in May. What changes is whether you get it done before you need it, and whether a slow fault gets caught while it is still small.
Why February and March are the right months
An AC that has sat unused from October to March is not in the condition you left it in. Dust settles on the indoor coil. The drain line silts up. Insects and lizards get into the outdoor unit. Rubber and insulation stiffen. A slow refrigerant leak that started last September has had six months to empty the system quietly.
Getting it serviced in the cold months means three things:
- A technician has the time to do the job properly instead of rushing to the next call.
- If a part has failed, there is time to order it, tell you the cost, and fit it before you actually need cooling.
- A leak found in March is a leak repaired once. The same leak found in May usually gets a hurried gas top-up because the household cannot wait.
From the middle of April onwards, everyone in Rohtas, Kaimur and Aurangabad wants the same thing on the same day. We still take those calls, but a queue is a queue.
What a proper service actually covers
This is where people get short-changed. A service that finishes in twenty minutes with a wipe of the filters is not a service. Here is the work that should happen.
Indoor unit
- Filters removed, washed, dried and refitted — not brushed off in place.
- The evaporator coil cleaned properly. In a split AC this means opening the unit or jet-washing the coil with the drain covered, not spraying the front grille.
- The blower wheel cleaned. This is the part almost everyone skips. A blower wheel caked with grey felt throws far less air than it should, and it is the reason an AC that was just serviced still feels weak.
- Drain tray and drain pipe flushed clear.
- Swing flap and sensor position checked.
Outdoor unit
- Condenser coil washed through from the back so the dirt comes out the way it went in.
- Fan blade and fan motor checked for play and noise.
- Any nest, leaf litter or creeper cleared out.
- Mounting bracket checked. Rusted brackets are common on older installations and they are a genuine safety issue on a first-floor wall.
Electrical and refrigerant
- Terminal connections checked and tightened. Loose terminals burn out, and a burnt terminal block on a hot evening is a repair, not a service.
- Capacitor checked.
- Earthing checked at the socket.
- Suction pressure read and the temperature drop across the indoor coil measured. A machine that cools properly has a clear, measurable difference between the air going in and the air coming out.
Ask for that last one. It is the honest test of whether the service worked, and it takes a minute.
Important: a service does not include refrigerant. Gas is not consumed and a healthy AC does not need topping up every year. If you are told during a routine service that the gas is low, ask where the leak is. Adding gas to a leaking system is money you will spend again next season.
What you can do yourself
Plenty, and it genuinely helps.
- Wash the filters. Every six to eight weeks through the season. Slide them out, rinse under a tap, dry fully in the shade, refit. Never refit a damp filter.
- Clear the space around the outdoor unit. Roughly a foot of clear air all round, nothing stacked on top, no creeper growing through the fins.
- Check the drain. Follow the pipe to where it empties. If water is not running out while the AC is cooling, the drain is blocked and the water will find another way out — usually down your wall.
- Run it for ten minutes in winter. Once a month through the cold season keeps the compressor oil moving and the seals from drying out.
- Look at your stabiliser. Make sure it is switched on, that its readings look sane, and that nothing is warm to the touch.
What you should not do yourself: opening the indoor unit body, jet-washing near the PCB, touching the copper flare nuts, or any work involving refrigerant. A cracked PCB costs more than several services.
The Bihar-specific problems we see most
Dust is the first one. Homes along the Grand Trunk Road through Sasaram, Kudra and Mohania collect a fine grit that packs the condenser fins solid within a season. Those units need the outdoor coil washed more thoroughly than a unit in a quiet lane.
Hard water is the second. In parts of Rohtas and Kaimur the groundwater carries enough iron and dissolved salts to leave a scale on coils that a plain rinse will not shift. It shows up as reddish staining on the fins and as a drain line that silts closed every year.
Voltage is the third. Summer evening supply sags badly in many mohallas, and a compressor that keeps trying to start on low voltage is a compressor slowly being damaged. If your lights dim when the AC kicks in, sort the stabiliser out before the season, not during it.
Booking it
Our current charges for AC service, gas charging, repair and installation are on the rate list. GST is extra, spare parts are billed at actual cost after we have told you the price, and travel charges apply beyond 5 KM. You get a bill for every job.
We are open Monday to Sunday, 8:00 AM to 6:30 PM. Phone +91 96315 11974, or book through the contact page and we will call you back within an hour. Same-day visits are possible across Rohtas, Kaimur and Aurangabad; beyond those districts we schedule the visit.
We cover Sasaram and Dehri-on-Sone along with Bikramganj, Nokha, Kudra and Daudnagar — the full list is on the service areas page.
Frequently asked questions
February or March, before the heat arrives. The machine has been idle all winter, technicians have time to do the job properly, and any failed part can be ordered and fitted without you sitting in a hot room. From mid-April onwards demand across Rohtas peaks and every booking joins a queue.
A service covers cleaning the indoor coil, blower and filters, washing the outdoor condenser, clearing the drain line, checking electrical connections and the capacitor, and reading pressure and the temperature drop across the coil. It does not include refrigerant, a leak repair, or replacement parts — those are separate work and separately priced on the rate list.
You can and should wash the filters every six to eight weeks, keep the outdoor unit clear, and check that the drain pipe is running. What you should not do is open the indoor body, spray water near the circuit board, or touch anything carrying refrigerant. Those need tools and cause expensive damage when they go wrong.
Usually because the blower wheel and the coil were not actually cleaned, only the filters. Ask whether the temperature drop across the indoor coil was measured after the work. If the airflow is strong but the air is not cold, the issue is refrigerant or the compressor, and that is a repair rather than a service.
Want a hand with this?
Book a technician at home across Sasaram, Rohtas, Kaimur and Aurangabad. Prices fixed up front, a bill for every job.