Air Conditioning Repair in Katy, TX
Katy asks two questions most places do not: what floodwater did to your outdoor unit, and whether the room that never cools is a fault or a construction defect still under builder warranty.
Call 832-662-4107
If your outdoor unit has ever been in floodwater
Katy has a flood history, and properties in and around the Barker and Addicks reservoir pools carry a particular HVAC question that most of the country never has to ask.
A condenser that has been partly or fully submerged is not automatically ruined, and it is not automatically fine either. The electrical components are the issue, not the coil. Contactors, capacitors, the compressor terminals and the disconnect box are where water and silt cause trouble, sometimes months later.
| What was submerged | What it usually means |
|---|---|
| Water reached the base but not the electrical panel | Often recoverable. Coil needs flushing of silt, wiring inspected |
| Water reached the electrical compartment | Components should be replaced, not dried out and hoped for |
| Full submersion including the compressor | Usually replacement. Water inside a sealed system is not repairable |
If your unit went underwater and has been running since without being checked, get it inspected before summer rather than during a failure. Silt in the coil fins is invisible from the outside and quietly strangles heat rejection.
Raising the condenser
If you are replacing a system on a property that has flooded, ask about mounting the new condenser on a raised platform. It costs modestly on an install that is happening anyway and removes the entire problem for the life of the equipment. Many Katy homeowners do this after the first time and wish they had done it before.
New construction has its own faults
Katy is still building, and a system in its first few years fails differently from an old one. What turns up on newer houses:
- Ducts disconnected during construction and never noticed, so one room never cools properly from day one.
- Condensate lines with insufficient slope, which drain poorly and block early.
- Systems sized by square footage rather than by load calculation, which in a new tight house often means oversized — short cycling, cold and clammy rather than cold and dry.
If your house is new and one room has never been right, that is a construction defect rather than a service issue, and it may still be within builder warranty. Worth checking before you pay anyone.
Before you call
- Say whether the property has flooded and whether the outdoor unit was in the water.
- If the house is under about three years old, check the builder warranty first.
- Note which rooms are affected — one room or the whole house is a different diagnosis.
- Check the filter and both breakers.