Air conditioner service in Austin, starting with a yearly AC tune up, is cheap insurance against the worst kind of breakdown: the one that happens on a 104-degree Saturday when every HVAC company in town is booked. HVAC maintenance is not complicated, but in this climate the timing is specific. Pollen loads filters in winter and spring, cottonwood fluff and grass clippings coat outdoor coils, drain lines grow algae in humid weather, and then come the triple-digit afternoons. This page lays out what a proper spring and fall check should include, what you can safely do yourself, and when to do it.
Austin AC Service is a free phone line and does no maintenance itself. When you ring (737) 378-9016, an automated assistant notes whether it is a cooling or heating matter, records who and where you are, and connects the call to a local, independently owned HVAC business licensed by TDLR as an ACR contractor. That company books the visit, does the work and bills you directly.
An Austin HVAC maintenance calendar
Central Texas has three pollen seasons, a long cooling season and a short, sharp heating season. This is how they line up with what your system needs.
| When | What is happening outside | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| December to February | Mountain cedar (Ashe juniper) pollen peaks. Average first freeze is around December 1 and the last around February 15. | Check the filter every few weeks. Heat pumps run defrost cycles; a little steam from the outdoor unit is normal. |
| March and April | Oak pollen takes over as cedar fades, coating cars, patios and outdoor coils. | Book the spring cooling check now, while companies are less busy. Change the filter again. |
| May and June | Humidity and heat build; cottonwood seeds and mowing debris collect on condenser fins. | Look at the outdoor coil and clear debris around it. Check that the condensate line drips outside when the AC runs. |
| July to September | Triple digits. The 1991 to 2020 normal for Camp Mabry is roughly 29 triple-digit days per year, and nearly all of them fall in these months. | Monthly filter checks, keep the outdoor unit clear, watch for ice or water where they should not be. |
| October and November | Grass and ragweed pollen; cooling winds down, heat comes on for the first cold front. | Book the fall heating check before the first freeze. Test carbon monoxide alarms if you have gas. |
What a real HVAC tune-up includes
Two kinds of visit get sold under the same name. The quick look takes twenty minutes: the technician glances at the filter, sprays off the outdoor unit and leaves a sticker. The real visit takes measurements and writes them down. The Air Conditioning Contractors of America publishes ANSI/ACCA 4 QM, a national standard for residential HVAC maintenance built as a set of inspection checklists for each type of equipment. ENERGY STAR publishes a shorter contractor checklist along the same lines. Ask which one the company works from.
Spring cooling check
- Electrical connections tightened; voltage and amperage measured on the compressor and fan motors
- Capacitors tested against the rating printed on them, contactor inspected for pitting
- Outdoor coil inspected and cleaned; bent fins straightened
- Indoor coil and blower checked for dust buildup and proper airflow
- Primary condensate drain flushed, drain pan inspected, float switch tested
- Refrigerant measured by the manufacturer's charging method when readings suggest a problem
- Thermostat operation and temperature split checked
Fall heating check
- Gas furnace: burners, flame sensor and igniter cleaned and inspected; gas pressure checked
- Heat exchanger and flue inspected for cracks, rust, blockage or loose vent pipe
- Combustion and carbon monoxide readings taken on gas equipment
- Heat pump: reversing valve, defrost cycle and outdoor coil checked
- Backup electric heat strips and their safety limits tested
- Blower, filter and thermostat heating mode verified
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission urges a yearly professional inspection of every fuel-burning heating system, including the flues and vents, because a cracked heat exchanger or a disconnected vent can leak carbon monoxide into the house. Keep CO alarms on each level and outside sleeping areas. If you smell gas, leave right away and call the gas utility or 911 once you are outside. If a CO alarm goes off, get everyone out and call 911.
Pollen, filters and the Austin air
Austin is known for allergy trouble for good reason. Mountain cedar, a Central Texas specialty, releases clouds of pollen from December into February. Oak follows in March and April, grass runs from late spring into fall, and ragweed shows up from late summer to November. All of it ends up in your return air.
A loaded filter starves the system of air. The Department of Energy says swapping a dirty, clogged filter for a clean one can cut an air conditioner's energy use by 5 to 15 percent, and low airflow is also a common reason indoor coils freeze. ENERGY STAR's rule is simple: look at the filter every month and change it at least every three months, more often in heavy-use seasons. In Austin that means cedar season and midsummer.
Higher-rated filters catch more fine pollen but can also restrict airflow on systems not designed for them. Ask the technician which rating your blower and return can handle.
Outdoor coils and indoor drains
The outdoor unit gets rid of the heat your house collects all day, and it can only do that if air moves freely through its coil. In late spring, cottonwood trees along Austin's creeks drop fluffy seeds that mat onto condenser fins along with mowing clippings, dryer lint and oak tassels. A matted coil runs hotter and harder, which shortens the life of the compressor and fan motor. Part of a good spring check is a proper coil cleaning; between visits you can help, as described below.
Inside, every gallon of moisture the AC pulls out of the air drains through a small pipe. Warm, wet and dark, that pipe is a good home for algae and slime, especially through Austin's humid spring and early summer. When it clogs, the water backs up into the pan, trips a float switch that shuts the cooling off, or overflows through a ceiling if there is no working safety switch. A technician should flush the drain and test the switch each spring. The DOE also suggests keeping drain channels clear so the unit can shed water.
Signs the tune-up is turning into a sales call
Most companies run honest maintenance visits. A few use them to fish for big tickets. Slow down and ask questions if you hear any of these.
- "You need refrigerant again this year." A sealed system that keeps needing refrigerant has a leak. The leak is the repair.
- A long list of urgent repairs with no readings. Ask what was measured, what the normal value is and what yours showed.
- "Your system is old, you should replace it" with nothing failed. Age is not a diagnosis. Ask whether anything is actually wrong.
- No paperwork. A proper visit ends with a written checklist of what was done and found.
- Pressure to decide today. It is always reasonable to see the worn part, sleep on it and get a second opinion.
HVAC maintenance you can safely do yourself
These are the tasks that make a real difference between professional visits. None of them involve opening an electrical panel, touching wiring or handling refrigerant or gas parts. Leave those to a licensed technician.
- Filter. Note the size printed on the frame, keep spares on hand, and check it monthly. Write the date on each new one.
- Clear space around the outdoor unit. Trim shrubs back, keep mulch, toys and grass clippings off the cabinet, and blow or sweep debris away from the base. Point the mower discharge away from it.
- A gentle rinse, power off. If the coil is coated with fluff or dust, turn the system off at the thermostat and the breaker, then spray the outside of the fins with a garden hose on a soft setting. Never use a pressure washer; it flattens the fins. If the coil is matted, leave it for the technician.
- Watch the drain. Find where the condensate line exits outside. On a humid summer day it should drip steadily while the AC runs. If it is dry and there is water in the indoor pan, call before it overflows.
- Keep vents and returns open. Furniture, rugs and closed registers starve the system of air and can freeze the coil.
- Thermostat batteries and settings. Replace batteries once a year and confirm the schedule still fits your household.
Heat pumps need the fall visit too
Plenty of Austin homes heat with a heat pump rather than gas, and it is easy to assume one spring visit covers it because the same outdoor unit does both jobs. It does not. In heating mode the system relies on a reversing valve, a defrost control that periodically melts frost off the outdoor coil, and electric backup strips that carry the house when it gets very cold. Those parts sit idle all summer, so fall is the time to prove they work. Winter Storm Uri in February 2021 kept Camp Mabry below freezing for 144 hours straight. That is not the week to find out the backup heat does not work. If the thermostat shows "emergency heat" or "aux heat" running constantly on a mild day, mention it when you call.
Maintenance plans: what to ask before you sign up
Many companies sell a yearly agreement that bundles the spring and fall visits, often with scheduling priority or a repair discount. The line does not sell plans and does not vouch for any company's terms. The value depends on the details, so ask:
- Which checklist does each visit follow, and will I get the readings in writing?
- Does the price cover every system in the house, including a second unit or a furnace?
- Is coil cleaning included, or is it an add-on?
- What exactly is discounted, and by how much?
- Does it renew automatically, and how do I cancel?
Also check your equipment warranty. Some manufacturers' warranty terms refer to proper maintenance, so keep the paperwork from each visit with the original installation records.
Want a spring or fall check booked before the rush? Call and say it is for maintenance. You will be put through to a licensed local company that serves your area.
- Call any hourAn automated assistant answers (737) 378-9016 and asks whether it is about cooling or heating.
- Describe the problemGive your name, a callback number, your city or ZIP and what the system is doing.
- Get put throughThe call goes to an independent, locally owned HVAC company, which hears a short summary before it picks up.
- Deal with them directlyThat company diagnoses, quotes, does the work and is paid by you. If it cannot answer, it gets your details to call back.
How this line works: Austin AC Service is a free phone line, not an HVAC company. It does not repair, install, quote or schedule work and holds no license. Calls are transferred to independent, locally owned HVAC companies that hold Texas air conditioning and refrigeration contractor licenses. Those companies may pay Austin AC Service a referral fee. You never pay the line. How it works.
Check any license yourself. Texas air conditioning and refrigeration contractors are licensed by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. Ask for the license number and look it up at tdlr.texas.gov (opens in a new tab).
Related services
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Heating and Furnace Repair
Gas furnaces, heat pumps and emergency heat. Why Austin heating systems fail on the first cold night and what a good technician checks.
Air Duct Cleaning
When duct cleaning is worth paying for, what the EPA and NADCA say, and how to spot a too-good-to-be-true offer.
Tune-ups across the Austin area
The same seasons drive maintenance from Georgetown down to Kyle and out to Dripping Springs. Each area page covers what is local, from utilities to housing age.
- All Austin-area service areas
- South Austin
- Round Rock
- Cedar Park
- Pflugerville
- Georgetown
- Leander
- Kyle
- Hutto
- Buda
- Lakeway
- Manor
- Dripping Springs
If a tune-up turns up a bigger problem, the AC replacement page explains how to weigh repair against a new system, and the guide to choosing an HVAC company covers checking a license.