Emergency AC Repair in Charleston, SC

Emergency AC repair in Charleston starts with a phone call you can make at any hour. Our Google hours read open 24 hours, 7 days a week. Call Aero Air Techs at (831) 461-3437 and we will tell you when a technician can reach you, then talk you through what to do until then.

We do not print an arrival time on this page, because it changes with the calls already running and where you are. You will get a straight answer on the phone, and you can decide from there.

Here, a dead AC is more than a comfort problem. NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals show about 64 days a year at or above 90°F at Charleston International Airport, and the humidity stays with you overnight.

What counts as an AC emergency?

Sort your situation first. The table below separates what needs action now from what can wait for a daylight call.

What is happening	How to treat it	Your first move
Older adult, infant or chronically ill person in a hot home	Emergency	Move them somewhere cool, then call
Burning smell at a vent or the unit	Emergency	Thermostat off, breaker off. Call 911 for smoke or flame
Water coming through a ceiling	Emergency	System off, catch the water, move what is below
Breaker trips again after one reset	Urgent	Leave it off and call
Outdoor unit hums, fan will not spin	Urgent	Shut it down so the compressor does not overheat
Ice on the copper line	Urgent	Shut it down and let it thaw
Business with stock, servers or guests at risk	Urgent	Call and tell us what is at stake
Warm air, nobody at risk, house still bearable	Can often wait for morning	System off, then call and ask about timing

AC stopped working? Do this right now

Work down this list before you do anything else. It takes a few minutes and may save a trip.

1. Turn the system off at the thermostat. Running a failing unit can damage the compressor.
2. Check the breaker. Reset a tripped AC breaker once, and only once.
3. Pull the filter. A blocked filter can freeze the coil and stop cooling.
4. Look at the drain pan. If water is standing, a float switch may have cut the power, so the fault is the drain and not the switch.
5. Close blinds and doors. Shut the sunny rooms and keep everyone in the coolest part of the home.
6. Call us. Have the symptom ready, plus the model number if you can reach it safely.

When the heat itself is the emergency

Put people ahead of the equipment. CDC lists adults 65 and older, infants and young children, pregnant people and people with chronic medical conditions among those at higher risk from heat, along with anyone without air conditioning at home. Ready.gov advises checking on older adults and neighbors, finding a cooling center when home is not cool and not relying on a fan, which can give a false sense of comfort.

The National Weather Service says confusion, slurred speech, hot skin or a body temperature above 103°F can mean heat stroke. Call 911 or get the person to a hospital right away. Do not wait on a repair. Our heat wave guide has more on staying safe at home.

24 hour AC repair: where we go and how timing works

Open 24 hours is about when you can call. It says nothing about how many minutes away a technician is.

We are based in Charleston and handle urgent AC service across the surrounding areas, including North Charleston, James Island, Mount Pleasant and Isle of Palms. Bridges, storms and the calls ahead of yours all affect the wait, so the phone is the only place to get a real answer. Long trips to places such as Sumter, Hilton Head Island and Myrtle Beach are arranged by phone. Call first so we can confirm a date.

AC out on a weekend in a rental, shop or office? Say so on the call. Guests arriving, food on the shelves or a hot server closet can change what makes sense tonight, and we can talk through a stopgap while the repair gets planned.

What changes the night trip depends on where the system sits. Drive times below are road estimates from our Charleston base on a clear run.

• Hanahan: about 18 minutes, the shortest trip in our coverage.
• James Island: about 20 minutes, though tide water on Central Park Road can slow the last stretch.
• North Charleston: about 22 minutes. Tell us the house age, since a 1920s cottage and new infill fail differently.
• Sullivan's Island: about 23 minutes, and the Ben Sawyer swing bridge opens for taller boats.
• Mount Pleasant: about 25 minutes. Say which of two systems quit if the upstairs and downstairs run separately.
• Johns Island: about 28 minutes, with the Stono bridges setting the pace.
• Summerville: about 34 minutes, and I-26 can shift that in either direction.
• Isle of Palms: about 35 minutes. Rental owners should have the city's 24/7 contact ready, because guests may call that person first.
• Folly Beach: about 36 minutes on Folly Road, the way everything arrives.

Our Google profile states the aim this way: give us a call so you can get cooling again today. Read that as what we are working toward and not as a promise. Parts, access and the day's calls decide the rest, and we will tell you if tonight is not realistic.

Emergency AC repair in Charleston: what happens on arrival

An emergency visit follows the same testing order as a planned one, because guessing at night costs more than it does by day.

1. Confirm what you saw. When it stopped, what it sounded like and what you already tried.
2. Make it safe. Power is isolated before any panel work.
3. Test the likely parts. Capacitor, contactor, fan motor, refrigerant pressures and the condensate drain.
4. Explain the fault. You hear what failed and see the part if it can be shown.
5. Quote before the work. You approve the repair, or you choose to wait for regular hours.
6. Repair and confirm. With approval, we make the fix and run the system to check the temperature drop.

By the time the technician leaves, you should have these things in hand.

• A plain explanation of what failed and why
• A quote for anything still to be done
• A working system, or a clear reason it has to stay off
• A note of any part on order and what happens next

If the right part is not on hand, we will say so. You will hear what can be done tonight and what has to wait. Before you leave anyone working on your refrigerant, know the federal rule: EPA Section 608 bars venting and requires technicians who handle refrigerant to be certified. That applies to every company in the trade, so ask.

If the failure turns out to be the end of the unit's life, you will not be pushed into a decision at midnight. Read about AC replacement in daylight and compare your options first.

After hours AC repair: what to ask about price

Ask about after-hours pricing when you call. Then ask what the first visit includes, so nothing comes as a surprise. These items move the total.

• The failed part. A capacitor is a small job, and a compressor is not.
• The hour and the day. Late nights, weekends and holidays can differ from regular hours.
• Parts availability. Supply houses keep short hours, which can mean a second visit.
• Refrigerant. The type, the amount and whether a leak has to be found first.
• Access. A tight attic or a tall raised stand takes longer.

Have the model and serial numbers ready, and ask the manufacturer what its warranty covers. Parts coverage and labor are often separate, and after-hours charges may not be included at all.

Companies price after-hours work differently. Some add a flat fee and others add a percentage, so ask which applies and get it itemized before work starts. Leave refrigerant alone while you wait, because adding it hides the leak.

Do permits and rules still apply at 2 a.m.?

Yes, and they depend on what the fix turns out to be. Swapping a capacitor or contactor is a repair. Changing out the equipment is a different matter, because the City of Charleston's Form 5.1 lists a Change Out Condenser and/or Air Handler inspection. If a midnight failure ends in a new system, check with the Permit Center at (843) 577-5550 once it opens. North Charleston, Mount Pleasant and other towns run their own offices.

Floodwater changes the order of things. Keep the breaker off and have the unit inspected before anyone restarts it. Anyone can check a South Carolina contractor on the LLR license lookup at any hour.

Why call Aero Air Techs when it stops cooling?

• Open 24 hours, 7 days a week, per our Google Business Profile.
• 4.9 out of 5 on Google across 16 reviews as of October 2026.
• A real answer on timing, instead of a promise nobody can keep.
• A quote first. You approve the work before it starts.
• Prompt arrivals, in customers' words. Mary M. wrote, "We called Cris and he came right over."

For problems that can wait for regular hours, see AC repair. If the fault is on the heating side, go to emergency furnace repair.