AC Repair in Houston, TX
Air conditioners here run from April through October. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Harris County will get in touch.
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Seven months of Houston heat wears an AC down
Your air conditioner runs from April through October here, and on a lot of those afternoons it's pushing against 93°F outside. That kind of stretch keeps the compressor working hard for most of the year, with little time off between cooling seasons to recover. Capacitors and contactors wear out from that steady load, and when they go, the unit either won't start or won't stay running.
Harris County has also logged 149 hail events and 178 damaging wind events over the past ten years, with hail up to 2.75 inches. That kind of weather bends fins on the outdoor coil and can knock the unit out of alignment. A coil that's bent or blocked can't move heat the way it should, and you'll notice the air coming from your vents isn't as cold as it used to be.
- 7 months
- April through October, your air conditioner is on duty
- 93°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 149 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 178 wind events
- in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new air conditioner would cut about $90 a year off cooling for a typical Harris County home.
Estimates for a typical Harris County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Texas fuel prices and NOAA climate normals. Your home will differ.
Repair makes sense when a part like a capacitor or contactor has failed.
Replacement makes sense when the compressor has failed or the system uses R-22 refrigerant, which is no longer made.
Texas requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
Texas requires a state license to work as an HVAC contractor, and that license is tied to the contractor, not to each job. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation issues it, so the same license covers this repair and any other HVAC work that contractor does.
Because Texas licenses the contractor, that license is what stands behind the work on your air conditioner. Separately, federal law requires any technician who opens the refrigerant side of a system to hold EPA Section 608 certification, and that rule applies the same way in every state.
Source: Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- The most common cause is a dirty air filter choking off airflow across the coil. When that happens the coil can ice up, and once it's iced over the air coming through the vents turns warm. Low refrigerant from a leak causes the same thing, and that one needs a licensed contractor to find and fix. If the air is warm but the fan is running fine, check the filter first before assuming the worst.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Most of the time this is a clogged condensate drain line. Your AC pulls moisture out of the air as it cools your home, and that water is supposed to run out through the drain line to the outside. Algae and dirt build up in that line over time and block it, so the water backs up and drips inside instead. A frozen coil that's thawing out will do the same thing, so if you've had warm air along with the leak, that's likely the cause.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the thermostat. Check that it's set to cool, the temperature is below the room temperature, and the batteries are good if it uses them. If the thermostat looks right, check the breaker for the outdoor unit, since a tripped breaker will shut the whole system down. If the breaker keeps tripping when you reset it, stop and have a licensed contractor look at it rather than resetting it again.