AC & heat pump
AC Keeps Tripping the Breaker? Stop Resetting and Read This First
One trip is an event; repeated trips are a message. Weak capacitors, seized fans, dirty coils, shorted compressors and tired breakers, in diagnosis order.
Formerly Adam & Sam Brothers RepairKenmore · north end of Lake Washington
Kenmore AC and heat pump repair along the north end of the lake
Kenmore homes split almost evenly between electric and gas heat, and Puget Sound Energy supplies both. We repair the air conditioners and heat pumps in Inglewood, the Moorlands and Kenlake Vista, and install new ones when a fix no longer adds up.
- Drive time
- Twelve to fifteen minutes via Ballinger Way and SR 522.
- Heating mix
- About 51% electric and 47% gas heat.
- Utility
- PSE provides both electricity and natural gas.
- $85 diagnosticBecomes part of the repair price when you say yes. If you pass on the repair, that visit is all you pay.
- Up to $18 offAny repair requested through the online form. The diagnostic itself is never reduced.
- No-charge site visitInstalls are quoted in writing, equipment and installation work in one number.
Kenmore's neighborhoods were platted after the war, Inglewood in 1953 and Uplake in 1954, and filled in through the 1960s, '70s and '80s; about 28% of homes date from 1960 to 1979 and 34% from 1980 to 1999. Roughly 63% of homes are detached houses, and a noticeable share of residents live in mid-size apartment buildings of twenty to forty-nine units, about 13% of all homes. Heat is split almost down the middle, 51% electric and 47% gas, so the cooling we see is a mix of heat pumps on electric furnaces and air conditioners sitting on gas ones. Plenty of both are on their second or third outdoor unit by now.
Kenmore is one of the cities where Puget Sound Energy supplies both the electricity and the gas, which keeps the utility side of a heat pump decision simple. Power outages are the other local factor. When the November 2024 bomb cyclone left more than 400,000 PSE customers without power, entire neighborhoods restarted their equipment at the same moment once the lines came back. A power return is a common time for a contactor with pitted points or a tired compressor to give out, and those two parts make up a big share of our Kenmore repair work. We test before we replace, because a compressor is the most expensive repair on the list and a contactor one of the cheapest. If the outdoor breaker trips again after one reset, leave it off until we arrive; repeated resets are hard on a compressor.
Kenmore symptoms and what they usually mean
Outdoor unit chatters or buzzes when the thermostat calls
- Likely cause
- Contactor with burned or pitted points
- What we do
- Replace the contactor, check the low-voltage control wiring feeding it, and test the capacitor while the panel is open
System stopped working after a power outage
- Likely cause
- Blown fuse at the disconnect, failed contactor or a capacitor
- What we do
- Trace power from the panel through the disconnect to the compressor, replace the failed part in the unit, and flag any house-side fault for an electrician
Compressor tries to start, then trips off on overload
- Likely cause
- Failing compressor or weak start components
- What we do
- Test windings and starting current, and fit a hard-start kit only where it's justified
Breaker trips instantly the moment the unit starts
- Likely cause
- Compressor shorted to ground
- What we do
- Confirm with a meter, then quote compressor replacement next to a new system
Upstairs rooms run several degrees warmer than the main floor
- Likely cause
- Duct layout of a split-level or daylight-basement house
- What we do
- Measure airflow in each room and suggest balancing dampers, added returns or zoning
Heat pump blows cold on chilly mornings or seems stuck in defrost
- Likely cause
- Defrost control or reversing valve fault
- What we do
- Test the defrost board, coil sensor and reversing valve in turn, and repair the part that failed
Hillside split-levels and a one-utility town
Much of Kenmore sits on slopes above SR 522 and Lake Washington, from the lakefront near Log Boom Park up toward Northshore Summit and Linwood Heights, and split-level and daylight-basement houses are common. Cooling them evenly is harder than cooling a rambler, since heat rises to the top floor while the thermostat sits on the main level. Before quoting a new system we look at duct sizes, return air and where the thermostat is mounted, because a larger unit rarely fixes an upstairs that stays hot. Sometimes the fix is a second return or a damper, not new equipment at all.
For the 47% of homes on gas, a heat pump outdoor unit added to the existing furnace gives central cooling and moves most winter heating onto electricity, with the furnace covering the cold snaps. Dual fuel also leaves a backup heat source when one system needs repair, which counts for something in a town that has seen major outages. For electric-furnace homes, a full heat pump system replaces the strip heat that drives winter bills. Both fuels come from PSE, and we check which of its heat pump programs or rebates apply to your home before you commit; we don't promise amounts. In Kenmore's apartment buildings, equipment and replacement rules depend on the building, so we work through the owner or manager.
From our shop it's twelve to fifteen minutes to Kenmore via Ballinger Way and SR 522, whether the address is up by Saint Edward State Park or down near the Kenmore Air Harbor. Morning calls Monday through Saturday can usually get a same-day visit, with no surcharge for the distance, and the common electrical parts are already on the van when we arrive.
Kenmore starting prices
Heat pump and AC repair in Kenmore starts at $285. A pitted contactor sits at the low end of that work and a compressor at the top, which is why we test carefully before recommending one. If a gas furnace is staying, a heat pump outdoor unit added to it starts at $5,250. These are entry-level prices across our service area, not a quote; the diagnostic produces a written estimate with the exact amount, and you decide before work starts. Install figures include the equipment and installing it, and the site visit and written install quote don't cost anything. If the outage damaged more than one component, the estimate lists each repair on its own line so you can see where the money goes.
- AC / heat pump capacitorfrom $285
- Contactorfrom $285
- Heat pump defrost boardfrom $300
- Outdoor fan motorfrom $425
- Refrigerant leak repair and rechargefrom $500
- Heat pump reversing valvefrom $1,100
- Indoor (evaporator) coilfrom $1,500
- Compressor (out of warranty)from $2,200
- Diagnostic visit$85, included in the repair
Starting prices for the north Seattle area, 2026. The $85 diagnostic is included in any repair you approve, and the exact price is in the written estimate before work starts.
System, installed
- Central air conditionerfrom $5,000
- Heat pump outdoor unit onlyfrom $5,250
- Inverter (variable-speed) heat pumpfrom $6,000
- Heat pump with air handlerfrom $7,000
Install prices start here, equipment and installation included, before any utility program. Multi-zone systems are priced after a visit. We do not charge for the site visit or the written quote.
Compressor or new system?
The compressor is where most Kenmore repair-or-replace decisions land. On a heat pump or AC under about eight years old, the compressor may still be under the manufacturer's parts warranty, and replacing it is usually the right call. On a 1990s or early-2000s unit, a failed compressor often comes with R-22 refrigerant, a worn coil and a fan motor near the end, and a new heat pump makes more sense than putting a compressor's price into one aging component. Contactors, capacitors and fan motors are a different story; they cost little relative to the system and are worth replacing at almost any age. For split-levels with an upstairs that never cools, we look at airflow first. In gas homes, keeping a healthy furnace and adding a heat pump outdoor unit is often cheaper than replacing both, and we price that path next to a full replacement. If the outdoor unit sits low on a sloped lot where water and leaves collect, we also price moving it while the system is open.
Common questions
My system stopped working after the power came back on. What happened?
When power returns, every motor and compressor on the street starts at once, and a part that was already weak may fail. Check the breaker for the outdoor unit and make sure the thermostat is set to the right mode. If the breaker trips again, leave it off and call us; it's usually a contactor, capacitor or fuse, sometimes the compressor.
Is it worth replacing just the compressor?
Sometimes. On a unit under about eight years old the compressor may still carry a manufacturer's parts warranty, which changes the cost a lot. On an older system, especially one using R-22, we usually show you the compressor price next to the price of a new heat pump so you can see the difference before choosing.
Can you add a heat pump to my PSE gas furnace?
Yes, when the furnace and its blower are in good shape. We add a heat pump outdoor unit and matching coil, wire it to a thermostat that chooses between the two, and set the switchover point with you. You get central cooling, and most of the heating moves to the heat pump.
Which rebates apply in Kenmore?
Puget Sound Energy provides both electricity and gas in Kenmore. Its heat pump programs vary by your current heating fuel and the equipment chosen, and they change over time. We check which ones apply to your home when we write the install quote and explain the requirements, without promising amounts.
Do you serve the lakeside and hilltop parts of Kenmore?
Yes, all of it, from the Log Boom Park lakefront and Arrowhead up to Northshore Summit and Linwood Heights. Kenmore is twelve to fifteen minutes from our shop, same-day visits are possible Monday through Saturday when you reach us in the morning, and we charge nothing extra for the distance.
Talk to Adam & Sam
Call (425) 570-9520 with the outdoor unit's label nearby, or book online and copy its model number into the form. The $85 diagnostic becomes part of an approved repair, and online booking means up to $18 less on the repair. Considering a heat pump? The site visit and quote cost nothing.
From Sam’s repair notes
AC & heat pump
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AC & heat pump
Outdoor AC Fan Not Spinning: Capacitor, Motor or Contactor — the Stick Test Tells
A still fan on a humming condenser points to one of three parts. Why the stick-start trick is a warning, not a fix, and what each repair involves.
Schedule a repair
Request a visit from Adam & Sam
Send the basics and we call you back with an arrival window, most days the same morning.
- $85 diagnostic Becomes part of the repair price when you say yes. If you pass on the repair, that visit is all you pay.
- Up to $18 off Any repair requested through the online form. The diagnostic itself is never reduced.
- $10 off A second appliance’s diagnostic when we check it during the same trip.