AC Maintenance in Tyler, TX
Air conditioners here run from May through October, so April is the time for a tune-up. Tell us about your system, and a licensed contractor who covers Smith County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Six months of Tyler heat wears an air conditioner down
Your AC runs from May through October here, six months of the year. On afternoons that average 93°F, it is not just cycling on and off. It is running long stretches to hold the house at temperature. That kind of run time wears on the capacitor and the contactor. It also cakes dirt onto the condenser coil, which makes the whole system work harder to shed heat.
A tune-up catches that wear before it turns into a breakdown. A technician checks the refrigerant charge, tests the capacitor under load, and cleans the condenser coil. Smith County has also logged 107 hail events and 148 damaging wind events over the past ten years, with hail up to 2.75 inches. Part of the visit is a look at the outdoor unit itself, the coil fins and the cabinet, for damage that is easy to miss until the unit is straining to keep up.
- 6 months
- May through October, your air conditioner is on duty
- 93°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 107 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 148 wind events
- in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
Book your AC tune-up in April, before homes here start needing cooling in May.
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
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- Dec
A tune-up checks the refrigerant charge, cleans the coils, tests the capacitor and tightens the electrical connections.
Texas requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation issues the license and keeps the record on file. It is tied to the contractor, not to any one job, so the same license covers the work whether it is a repair, an installation, or a maintenance visit like this one.
For a maintenance visit on an air conditioner, that license is what stands behind the person doing the work in Smith County. If the technician opens the refrigerant side of the system to check the charge or deal with a leak, federal law also requires EPA Section 608 certification, the same rule that applies in every state. Between the two, a Texas license and, where refrigerant is involved, the federal certification, the contractor working on your system in Smith County is accounted for on both counts.
Source: Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation
- What does AC maintenance include?
- A technician cleans the condenser coil outside and checks refrigerant levels, since a dirty coil or low charge makes the compressor work harder than it should. They test the capacitor and contactor that get the compressor running, check the evaporator coil, and inspect the condensate drain for clogs. Electrical connections get looked over too, since a loose or corroded connection is a common reason a unit fails. The technician should also confirm the thermostat is calling for cooling correctly.
- How often does an air conditioner need maintenance?
- Once a year, in spring before the heat arrives. Tyler runs cooling season from May through October, six months of the system working against afternoons averaging 93 degrees. A spring check catches a weak capacitor or a dirty coil before it fails on a hot day instead of during it.
- Is AC maintenance worth it?
- Yes, because most breakdowns start as something small a technician can catch early. A dirty coil makes the compressor work harder, and a weak capacitor is a common reason a unit stops turning on at all. Tyler has seen 107 hail events and 148 damaging wind events over the past ten years, so an annual check is also a chance to look over the outdoor unit for storm damage before it turns into a bigger repair.