ORANGE, Texas — As Southeast Texas continues to heat up you may have a hard time staying cool if you need a new air conditioner.
If you've been trying to get in contact with an a/c company and couldn’t get through it's likely that they are out on service calls.
We found out things are so bad some contractors are having to build houses without an a/c unit.
"One of the problems we're finding right now is the shortage of aluminum. A lot of manufacturers have moved over to the aluminum coils. There's now a shortage of those coils,” said Robert Currie who owns Innovative Air Solutions in Orange.
He says it's simple: the supply just can't keep up with the demand.
“They're sending units as fast as they can produce them, but it's just not fast enough and many manufacturers are actually running out of equipment right now,” he said.
For some the shortage is hitting home a little harder.
"I've heard customers have to be two to three weeks out without ac in their homes because the part can't be found anywhere. Can't find it online. These vendors don't have it,” said Ashla Taylor of Innovative Air Solutions
Air conditioning service companies say to avoid the shortage, you should get routine maintenance done on your a/c unit and pick up parts when you need them.
“Get your a/c checked and get your licensed HVAC technician scheduled because they're backed up right now. They're running from sunup till sundown right now,” Taylor said.
Currie says there is no foreseeable end to the supply disruption.
"Our summer really doesn't stop until about October because it's still very hot all the way through September. And there's going to be supply chain disruptions this entire time,” Currie said.
If don't you want to be left in out the heat a/c repairmen stress the importance of that routine maintenance as well as changing your filter regularly.