New AC units hard to come by these days as industry experiences shortage, higher prices
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - Toilet paper, chlorine, and even grape nuts cereal are some of the items that were in short supply, during various points of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Now, air conditioners are being added to the list.
People have listed various reasons behind the shortage of air conditions, including company closure during the pandemic, AC plant collapsing, soaring cost of materials like copper and aluminum, and problems with power outages in Texas. Whatever the reasons might be, it has caused AC prices to skyrocket, and that is if a person can buy one.
For Arizonans, air conditioners are at the top of the list for surviving the summer months, and people will notice when their AC unit goes out.
"We are in panic mode because we're still just being in the summer months, but it’s we know it’s getting hot," said Laurie Kearney.
The Kearneys lost two units in two weeks. Both are at least 20 years old, so they were on borrowed time. Laurie, however, had no idea the news that would hear next.
"We got the information that we don’t know when these are going to come in, so it could be, you know, June, July. They have no idea," said Laurie.
The shortage is leaving repairmen like Conrad Soudani on the hot seat.
"With COVID, they had to close down the factory, so production stopped for quite a while. There were some hurdles that we had to deal with then too, and we're dealing with some of those issues still," said Conrad.
The Kearneys got lucky. They found a great AC guy who patched one unit together temporarily, and brought in a portable unit for the master bedroom. However, until the new units arrive, surviving the Scottsdale summer suddenly has new meaning.
"We are very grateful. I don’t want to say we’re not," said Laurie. "It'll be really nice when both ACs arrive and are installed that we can get back to normal."
Besides availability, price is another problem, as units are reportedly selling for 20% higher prices than 2020. For the Kearneys, they are paying twice what they expected to pay.
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