# How often should air conditioning be serviced?

*The CFM team · F-Gas certified air conditioning engineers · CFM Cooling · Servicing*

For home systems, once a year keeps the unit at spec — clean filters, clear condensate drain, a coil clean and a refrigerant and electrical check. Commercial systems generally want servicing twice a year (pre-summer and mid-season) because they run harder for longer, and larger systems carry legal F-Gas leak-check requirements based on refrigerant volume. A neglected system doesn't usually fail dramatically — it just quietly cools less while costing more to run.

## What a proper AC service includes

Filter clean or replacement, indoor coil inspection and clean, condensate drain check (blocked drains are the number-one 'why is it dripping' call), outdoor unit inspection, electrical connections, operating pressures and temperatures checked against spec, and the results recorded.

## The efficiency argument

Dirty filters and coils make the unit work harder to move the same heat — the compressor runs longer and your electricity pays the difference. A service typically pays for itself in running costs alone on a heavily-used system.

## Commercial: the legal layer

Systems above certain refrigerant volumes carry mandatory leak-check intervals under F-Gas regulations, with records. If nobody's mentioned an F-Gas log for your building's kit, that's worth a conversation — we'll tell you plainly what applies.

> Neglected air conditioning does not fail dramatically — it just quietly cools less while your electricity pays the difference.
>
> — The CFM team, F-Gas certified air conditioning engineers

## Related questions

### Can I clean the filters myself?

Yes — home unit filters are designed for owner cleaning, and doing it monthly in heavy season keeps performance up between services. Anything involving the refrigerant circuit is engineer-only.

### My AC is dripping water — is that a service thing?

Usually a blocked condensate drain, and yes — it's the most common thing a service catches before it stains a wall. If it's dripping now, book it in; it rarely fixes itself.

### Do you service systems you didn't install?

Yes — whoever fitted it. We'll survey its condition on the first visit and tell you honestly what state it's in.

---
Canonical page: https://www.cfmcooling.co.uk/guides/how-often-should-air-conditioning-be-serviced