Formerly Adam & Sam Brothers RepairKenmore · Ductless heating and cooling
Kenmore splits almost evenly between electric and gas heat, and its hillsides above the north end of Lake Washington hold plenty of split-levels with a cold lower floor. Ductless heat pumps suit those houses, and we install new ones and repair the ones already working.
Kenmore's neighborhoods were platted in waves. Inglewood was laid out in 1953 and Uplake in 1954, suburban growth carried through the 1960s and 1970s, and about a third of today's homes went up between 1980 and 1999. Many of those houses climb the slopes above Lake Washington in Kenlake Vista, Linwood Heights and Northshore Summit, with a daylight lower level that stays cool and a living room that bakes behind big windows on summer afternoons. About half the city heats with electricity, from baseboards in the older ramblers to electric furnaces in 1980s two-stories, and the other half with gas. Floatplanes at the air harbor, Saint Edward State Park and Log Boom Park give Kenmore its lake-town feel; inside the houses, the questions are about rooms that run too hot or too cold.
That mix makes ductless heat pumps useful in several ways. In a baseboard house they can carry most of the heating and add cooling for the first time. In a ducted house they solve the floor the ducts never reached. In Kenmore's mid-size condo and apartment buildings of 20 to 49 units, home to about one household in eight, they are often the only practical way to add cooling at all. Both single-zone and multi-zone layouts are on our list, and we repair and clean the brands already on Kenmore walls. Common parts ride on the van, while inverter boards are model-specific and are usually ordered for a quick return visit.
Kenmore's slopes make outdoor-unit placement a real design question. On a hillside lot, the flat ground is often on the uphill side while the room that needs help is downhill, so we compare a wall bracket near the head with a pad farther away and a longer line. Shorter lines are better for efficiency and leaks, but a bracket on a tall wall needs safe access for service. Moisture off the lake also keeps units on the low side of a lot wet longer, so we raise them on stands that let water drain away from the base. We look at both placements on the walk-through and write the choice into the quote.
Power cuts are another local theme. During the November 2024 bomb cyclone, more than 400,000 PSE customers lost power, and wooded Kenmore streets were among the areas where trees came down. When power returns with a surge, an inverter board or a board fuse can fail, and the head comes back dark or shows a communication code. Before calling us, turn the system off at the breaker for a minute and back on. If the code stays, tell us exactly what it reads when you call and we will bring the right board where we can. Kenmore is about 12–15 minutes from our shop, so a morning call Monday through Saturday usually means a visit later that day.
In the condo buildings near downtown Kenmore and along Bothell Way NE, the association usually controls the roof, the exterior walls and the electrical room. Some buildings also limit the days contractors can work or ask for proof of insurance, which we can provide. We work from the board's rules, propose a location for the outdoor unit and a line-set route, and keep refrigerant work in-house under EPA Section 608 rules. In Kenmore, PSE delivers both the electricity and the gas, so its programs are the ones we research for your house while the quote is being written.
Kenmore mini-split repair and cleaning start at $285. Control boards sit toward the upper end, and before changing one we test the fan motor and power supply so the new board is not damaged by the same fault. On the install side, one zone begins at $4,000 with the equipment and the installation both priced in, and further zones start at $2,250 apiece. Multi-zone systems for a split-level or a whole baseboard house are quoted on request. There is no charge for the site visit or the written quote. Every figure here is a starting price for our area, not the price of your job. A repair is priced in writing once testing shows what broke, and installs are priced once we measure.
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.
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.
Storm damage is the case where repair most often wins. A board or fuse lost to a surge on an otherwise healthy system under about twelve years old is a reasonable fix, especially since the coil, compressor and line set are still sound. A compressor that has failed, or a leak in an old outdoor coil, changes the math, and on a system near fifteen years a new inverter unit can save enough on the PSE bill to matter. In a split-level where the original head heats only the upper floor and the lower floor still runs on baseboard, replacement is also a chance to add a zone downstairs. Condo owners should factor in the association's rules too, since a replacement may need fresh approval. Our written estimate shows the repair and a replacement option side by side.
On many LG systems, CH05 means the indoor and outdoor units have stopped talking to each other. A storm outage, a loose wire or a failing board can cause it. Switch the system off at the outdoor breaker for a minute and back on. If the code returns, call us with the code and the model number from the outdoor unit's nameplate, and we will test the wiring and both boards.
Not on the same outdoor unit, because one outdoor unit runs in either heating or cooling mode at a time. In practice that rarely matters, since a split-level usually needs the same mode on both floors and just more of it upstairs. If the floors truly need opposite modes, two single-zone systems are an option.
It usually can, if the association approves the outdoor unit location and the electrical work. Many buildings allow a wall bracket or a balcony stand, while others want units on the roof. We read the rules, propose a plan the board can review, and size the head for your unit's exposure to the sun and the lake.
Often a ducted heat pump is the better first step, because it reuses the ducts and covers the whole house. A mini-split makes sense for rooms the ducts serve poorly, such as a daylight basement or an addition. On the walk-through we tell you which option fits the house, and our team installs either one.
Yes. Kenmore homes get electricity from PSE, and its heat pump programs depend on things like your current heat source, the equipment and sometimes household income. We check which programs or rebates apply to your project when we prepare the written quote. We cannot promise an amount in advance, because program rules change.
Talk to Adam & Sam
Call (425) 570-9520 with the code the head is showing, or book online, describe it in the form and get up to $18 off the repair. The $85 diagnostic becomes part of the repair once you say yes, and a site visit for a new install is at no charge.
Mini-split
No ducts, room-by-room control, heating and cooling from one wall unit: why mini-splits suit North Seattle metro homes and what a clean install looks like.
Schedule a repair
Send the basics and we call you back with an arrival window, most days the same morning.