If your AC isn't keeping your house cool, check your condenser outside. Look through the top to see if the fan is turning and listen for the compressor to kick on. If all you hear is a humming noise rather than the sound of the compressor coming on, there could be a problem with the compressor or the capacitor connected to it. Here's how an air conditioning repair professional might troubleshoot problems with a compressor and make repairs with a hard start kit.

Check And Test The Capacitor

When the repair person removes the panel on the side of your condenser, the capacitor is in plain view. Your AC might have a single capacitor. It is often a dual capacitor that operates both the fan and the compressor. The capacitor can be checked with a multimeter to see if it's bad.

The repair person also checks to see if you have a startup capacitor and relay. The startup capacitor only works for a short time while the compressor is kicking in. Not all systems have them, but if your repair professional thinks it's necessary, one can be installed.

Replace A Bad Capacitor

If the capacitor is old or bad, the air conditioning repair profession can change it out with a new one. It's similar to replacing a battery. Wires are removed from the terminals, and a new capacitor is installed and the wires are reconnected, and the technician makes sure the wires are in the right order.

This may fix the problem and allow the compressor to kick on. However, a compressor can sometimes lock up or draw too much power and cause the circuit breaker to trip off occasionally. When this happens, the air conditioning repair professional might install a hard start kit that provides an initial boost of power to get the compressor started.

Install A Hard Start Kit

This kit contains a capacitor that has an internal relay and two wires on the top. The wires connect only to the compressor terminals on the run capacitor that's already installed on your air conditioner. The new capacitor is simple to install. The air conditioning repair person attaches it with a screw and then plugs the wires into the run capacitor.

When your air conditioner first starts up, the hard start capacitor kicks on to help your compressor start up and then it shuts down and the run capacitor takes over. This should enable your compressor to start more easily, reduce wear on your equipment, and stop the problem of tripping the circuit breaker.

For more information about air conditioner repair, contact a local service provider, like Baton Rouge Air Conditioning & Heating.