Kyle TX AC (888) 217-3739

An independent phone line that connects homeowners in Kyle, TX and nearby Hays County towns with heating and cooling contractors.

Kyle, TX · Hays County

The outdoor unit hums, but the fan does not spin

A humming outdoor unit with a still fan is trying to start and cannot. The most common cause is a failed run capacitor, one of the quickest repairs on any air conditioner. The less common one is a compressor that has seized, which is where replacement enters the conversation.

Call (888) 217-3739

The line is answered 24/7. Visits depend on which contractors are working your ZIP code.

What to do right now

Turn the cooling off at the thermostat. A compressor that keeps trying to start against a dead capacitor draws heavy current on every attempt and overheats. Do not push the fan blades with a stick: the capacitor stores a charge, and the fan can start without warning.

Why it happens in Kyle summers

A capacitor weakens with heat and age, and a unit sitting in the sun at the side of a Kyle house sees about 117 days a year at 90°F or above (San Marcos station, NOAA 1991–2020 normals). Capacitors that tested weak in spring are the ones that fail in the first long hot spell.

What a technician checks

The capacitor with a meter against its rating, the contactor, the fan motor, and the current the compressor draws at startup. If the capacitor is fine and the compressor still will not start, the technician checks the compressor windings and whether it is locked.

When it points to replacement

A capacitor or contactor is a small repair. A failed compressor is a large share of the machine. On a system installed before about 2010, which often runs on R-22, or on a system with a history of recharges, a dead compressor usually leads to AC replacement.

What to have ready when you call

  • Whether the outdoor fan, the compressor, or neither is running
  • Whether the breaker has tripped
  • The install year and refrigerant from the outdoor data plate
  • Your address, ZIP code and access to the side yard

Common questions

The fan started after I nudged it. Am I fine? It confirms the capacitor is weak, and it will fail again, likely on a hotter day.

Have the install year and the thermostat reading ready. Ask who is taking calls in your ZIP code today.

(888) 217-3739

Read next

AC replacement in KyleAC repair in Kyle

Other things a system does

A burning smell the first time the heat comes onA dusty smell the first time the heat runs in a Kyle, TX house is usually normal. An electrical smell, one that lingers, or a CO alarm is not.
A ceiling stain or water dripping under the attic AC unitA ceiling stain or dripping water under the attic air handler in Kyle, TX usually means a clogged condensate drain or a full drain pan. What to do and what to ask.
Ice on the copper line or the attic unit in JulyFrost on the copper line or ice in the attic unit in a Kyle, TX summer means airflow or refrigerant trouble. What to do now and what a technician checks.
The AC runs all afternoon and the house keeps getting warmerThe AC runs nonstop and the house climbs past the setting every afternoon in Kyle, TX. What separates a weak system from a failing one, and what to report.
The furnace will not light on the first cold nightGas furnace in the attic won't light, or lights and shuts off, on the first cold front in Kyle, TX. What usually failed and what to tell the dispatcher.
The heat pump is stuck on aux or emergency heatHeat pump showing aux heat all the time in Kyle, TX, or stuck on emergency heat? What is normal on a cold night, what is a fault, and what to report.
The house still has the system the builder installedStill running the AC and furnace the builder installed in a 2000s Kyle, TX house? How to find its age and refrigerant, and when replacing it makes sense.
The outdoor heat pump is covered in iceOutdoor heat pump iced over in a Kyle, TX cold snap? Light frost is normal; a solid block is not. What defrost does, what fails, and what to do now.
The upstairs or one back room never cools downOne room or the whole upstairs stays hot while the rest of a Kyle, TX house cools. Attic ducts, returns and sizing: what a technician measures.

Towns this line covers

Kyle 78640Buda 78610Uhland 78640Niederwald 78640Mountain City 78610San Marcos 78666Driftwood 78619Dripping Springs 78620

Updated

Call (888) 217-3739

Calls may be recorded.