AC Repair in Plano, TX
Air conditioners here run from May through October. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Collin County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Six months of Texas heat wears an AC down fast
Your air conditioner runs from May through October here, six months of straight work. On afternoons that average 93°F, the compressor cycles on and off for hours at a stretch trying to keep up. That kind of run time wears on the capacitor and the contactor, the parts that get the compressor started and keep it running. When one of those gives out, the unit either won't start or the outside fan runs while the air inside stays warm.
Collin County has also seen 283 hail events and 86 damaging wind events over the past ten years, with hail as large as 5.25 inches. Hail that size can bend the fins on the outdoor coil or damage the fan blade, and a bent coil makes the unit work harder to move the same amount of heat.
- 6 months
- May through October, your air conditioner is on duty
- 93°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 283 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 86 wind events
- in ten years, and wind drives debris into outdoor units
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new air conditioner would cut about $70 a year off cooling for a typical Collin County home.
Estimates for a typical Collin 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.
The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation issues that license after the contractor passes its exam, and it keeps a record of who holds one. The license belongs to the contractor, not to any single job, so the same license covers the work whether it is a repair, a new install, or a service call down the road.
For a repair on your air conditioner, that license is what stands behind the person working on your system. If the job means opening the refrigerant side, the technician also has to hold EPA Section 608 certification, which is federal and applies no matter what state you're in. Between the two, one tells you the state has tested and tracked this contractor, and the other tells you the person handling refrigerant is trained to do it without venting it into the air.
Source: Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation
- Why is my AC not blowing cold air?
- The most common reason is a dirty air filter cutting off airflow across the coil. A thermostat set wrong or a breaker that tripped can also do it. If the filter is clean and the thermostat is set to cool, the refrigerant charge may be low, and that calls for a licensed contractor to check with gauges.
- Why is my AC leaking water?
- Water around your unit almost always means the condensate drain line is clogged. Algae and dirt build up inside that line over a season of running six months a year, and once it backs up the water has nowhere to go but out. A frozen evaporator coil can also drip once it thaws, so if the line is clear, that is worth checking next.
- Why won't my AC turn on?
- Start with the breaker and the thermostat batteries, since both are easy to miss and both stop the system cold. If those check out, the capacitor that starts the compressor may have failed, which is common after a lot of hot afternoons pushing the system hard. A licensed contractor can test the capacitor and the rest of the electrical parts to find which one quit.