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LarchHVAC & Appliance (425) 570-9520
New AC condenser installed beside a houseFormerly Adam & Sam Brothers Repair

North Seattle · Northgate, Lake City, Greenwood

North Seattle AC and heat pump repair after the 108°F summer

Sea-Tac hit an official 108°F on June 28, 2021, in a region where only about 44% of homes had air conditioning two years earlier. We repair the cooling north Seattle has added since, and install heat pumps in houses still without it.

Call (425) 570-9520Book online
Drive time
Northgate 13–17 minutes; Lake City 16–20; Greenwood 17–21.
Newer homes
A third of Seattle homes were built in 2000 or later.
Electric utility
Seattle City Light; PSE supplies 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.

The north end of Seattle, roughly everything from N 85th Street up to 145th, was annexed in 1954, and most of its houses went up in the 1940s through the 1960s. Lake City grew along Lake City Way; Greenwood around Greenwood Avenue and 85th; Northgate around the mall that opened in 1950. Few of those houses were built with cooling, and many still lack it. Citywide, about 61% of homes heat with electricity, whether baseboards, electric furnaces or heat pumps, and PSE gas heats roughly a third. That combination, older houses, no cooling and plenty of costly resistance heat, shapes almost every north Seattle call we take.

So the work splits two ways. Some calls are repairs on systems added in the last fifteen years, mostly heat pumps and central air: capacitors that fail during the first heat wave, slow refrigerant leaks, outdoor units on settling pads. Others are installs, often replacing an aging gas or electric furnace, or a houseful of baseboards, with a heat pump that also cools. Northgate is thirteen to seventeen minutes from our shop, Lake City sixteen to twenty, and Greenwood seventeen to twenty-one, and we also cover Broadview, Bitter Lake, Haller Lake, Pinehurst, Maple Leaf and Wedgwood; Ballard, farther south and west, takes longer. Capacitors, contactors and fan motors ride on the van, and refrigerant work stays with our own technicians.

North Seattle cooling and heat pump problems

  • AC dies on the first afternoon that hits 90°F

    Likely cause
    Run capacitor weakened by age and heat
    What we do
    Test it under load and replace it from the van, usually right there in the driveway

  • Cooling slowly worse each summer

    Likely cause
    Refrigerant leak at a brazed joint, service valve or coil
    What we do
    Locate it, repair it, evacuate the system and recharge by weight

  • Outdoor unit tilted on its pad, lines kinked or strained

    Likely cause
    Pad settling; parts of Greenwood sit on peat that settles
    What we do
    Re-level the unit on a firmer base and check the lines and joints for leaks or damage

  • Ice on the suction line in July

    Likely cause
    Low charge or a dirty filter choking airflow
    What we do
    Check the filter, blower and return airflow, then gauge the charge

  • Newer heat pump can't keep the house warm in a cold snap

    Likely cause
    Defrost fault, low charge or thermostat setup
    What we do
    Check the thermostat's heat pump settings, the charge and the defrost controls, and correct what's wrong

  • Unit trips the breaker during a heat wave

    Likely cause
    Compressor overheating or weak start parts
    What we do
    Measure amp draw under load and test the capacitor and contactor before blaming the compressor

Furnace swaps, peat soil and City Light

Many north-end ramblers and split-levels still have the ducts laid for their first furnace, so the usual change is a heat pump with a matching air handler that reuses them, after we check the ducts are big enough for the airflow a heat pump needs. You gain cooling in the same project, and an electric furnace's high running cost goes away. Removing the old furnace is part of the job. The air handler usually fits in the space the old furnace occupied, whether that's a basement, a utility room or a closet, and we confirm the fit before quoting. For gas-heated ramblers and split-levels whose furnace still has years left, a heat pump outdoor unit on the existing furnace is the lighter-touch option.

Greenwood was built partly on a peat bog, and the city designated peat areas as Environmentally Critical Areas in 2008 because buildings there settle. Outdoor units feel that too: a pad that sinks or tilts strains the refrigerant lines and can crack a joint over time. On installs there, we use a stand or a pad with a solid base, and on repairs we check level and line strain before assuming a leak is somewhere else. Where a house has no ducts at all, we quote ductless equipment beside any ducted option so you can compare.

Seattle City Light supplies electricity and Puget Sound Energy supplies gas. The City of Seattle and City Light have both run heat pump programs over the years; rules and amounts change, so when we quote we find out which programs or rebates your house qualifies for and explain what they need, without promising amounts. Having the model number from the furnace label and the main breaker size from the electrical panel ready when you call helps us prepare for a conversion visit. Morning calls Monday through Saturday can usually get a same-day visit anywhere on the north end, with no distance surcharge.

Technician reading a manifold gauge on an AC repair

North Seattle starting prices

AC and heat pump repair in north Seattle starts at $285; a run capacitor is the usual summer fix, and finding and sealing a refrigerant leak, then recharging, is the bigger job we see most. For a furnace conversion that keeps the existing ducts, a heat pump with an air handler starts at $7,000. These figures show where prices begin in our area and aren't a quote; you get the exact cost in a written estimate after the diagnostic, before any work begins. Install pricing includes the equipment and the installation, and the site visit and written quote cost nothing. Removing the old gas or electric furnace is part of the conversion quote.

See all prices

  • 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.

Repair the add-on, or replace the old furnace too?

Most north Seattle cooling is young enough that repair is the right answer: capacitors, contactors, fan motors and small leaks at accessible joints. Replacement comes up in two situations. One is an early heat pump or AC, often from the 2000s, with a leaking coil or a failed compressor, especially on R-22. The other is the house itself: an electric furnace that costs too much to run, or a gas furnace old enough that you'd rather replace it once with a heat pump than repair it now and add cooling later. In a rambler or split-level that already has ducts from its furnace, a ducted heat pump is usually practical. In a house with no ducts at all, a ductless system often costs less overall. If your gas furnace is fairly new, keeping it and adding a heat pump outdoor unit gives you cooling now and leaves the full conversion for later. We price each realistic option and put them on paper so you can compare them at your own pace.

Common questions

Can you replace my old furnace with a heat pump?

Yes. We remove the old gas or electric furnace, install a heat pump outdoor unit with a matching air handler, and reuse the ductwork after checking its size. The house gains air conditioning in the same project. In a house heated only by baseboards, we plan ductless heads instead, and we check which city or City Light programs apply when we quote.

Which parts of Seattle do you cover?

The north end: Northgate, Lake City, Greenwood, Broadview, Bitter Lake, Haller Lake, Pinehurst, Maple Leaf and Wedgwood. Northgate is thirteen to seventeen minutes from our shop and Greenwood seventeen to twenty-one, off peak. Ballard is farther; call and we'll tell you what we can schedule.

My AC quits every time we get a heat wave. Why?

The usual cause is a run capacitor that has lost capacity; it holds up in mild weather and fails when the compressor works hardest. Dirty condenser coils and slow leaks make it worse. A capacitor replacement is a small repair; we also check the charge and coil so it doesn't happen again next summer.

Is a heat pump enough for a Seattle winter?

For most north Seattle homes, yes. Winters here are mild and damp, which is where modern heat pumps work well, and a ducted system includes electric backup strips for the rare deep cold snap. If you keep a gas furnace, it can serve as the backup instead, switching on only on the coldest days.

What can I check before calling about no cooling?

Make sure the thermostat is on cool with the setpoint below room temperature, check the breaker for the outdoor unit, and replace the filter if it's clogged. Don't keep resetting a breaker that trips again right away. If those look fine, call us with the model number from the outdoor unit's label.

Talk to Adam & Sam

Northgate, Lake City or Greenwood: call (425) 570-9520 or set up a visit online. Approving the repair folds the $85 diagnostic into its price, and online bookings take up to $18 off the repair. For a heat pump conversion, the site visit and written quote cost nothing.

Call (425) 570-9520Book online

From Sam’s repair notes

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.

Requests sent from this form get up to $18 off the repair. The $85 diagnostic stays the same and is folded into any repair you approve.

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