I have a small apartment behind the house here that has a window a/c and heater . One day it was working fine, the next day it would turn on and "hum"..no fan blowing, and the fins were cold. I had it on during the day and turned it off at night. Next day this humming stuff. For the next few days the fins were still "coldish"..I figured it froze up. Several days later, figuring it would thaw out, does the same thing. Is there a simple solution to this? These units aren't cheap.

The last A/C thread ended poorly. Let’s see how long it takes someone to get offended this time.

could be a fan issue...

It could be a capacitor bad or the fan motor or relay could be bad.

The capacitor (if it's bad) would be the easiest and cheapest part to replace.

Some A/C supply houses will check your capacitor for you if you bring it in.

See if you can spin the fan with a stick and see if it takes off

Cheap is a relative term. Unless you can fix it yourself I suspect buying a new one is the way to go.

No matter what the price is on some consumer goods they are disposable.

Spare no expense for comfort....

Dirt dobber nest blocking the fan maybe. The good news is the compressor is running. Get it out of the window and see if something is blocking the fan rotation. It might be worth replacing the fan motor.

There is no typically no simple solution to a failed AC unit when you don't have the proper knowledge and hands-on skills, which means paying someone else, which means buy a new one if the issue is with a window unit. I doubt anyone will diagnose/repair it for a fee that competes with a new one.

The symptoms described typically mean the starting capacitor has failed. Those vary by unit, and are often specific plug-in capacitors that can be difficult to find in some cases. The last one of my own that I repaired was that way - no generic start cap would easily work. You would need to be able to disassemble the unit, read the schematic, locate the capacitor to get the part number, then try to find a new one. That can't be covered in a forum post. You either know how to do it, or you don't. That takes you back to the buy a new one solution. If your unit is old, getting a new one isn't all bad as current units are a lot more efficient than those of years gone by. You're also getting to the end of the season, and places like Home Depot will soon begin to discount them, typically.

Do you hear the compressor trying to kick on? If so it’s probably a capacitor.

Thanx for all the info. I heard getting a new one is the best way out for me. My step daughter lived in the apt. until it went out. She is 100% Disabled ARMY AFG VET staying with her sister till this situation gets fixed. Thanx again...

Yup, probably the cazapitor. Most are two stage, one for fan one for compressor. Take a peek, if it’s swollen up it is you culprit.

Go hire someone to work on it, than start looking for a new one.....

Yea those offended people... I tell ya.