HVAC Repair in Butte, MT
If your system quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Silver Bow County will get in touch.
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Eleven months of heat, one season of relief
Butte asks for heat from August through June. That leaves June alone as a break, and even then afternoons only reach 73°F, so the air conditioner barely runs if the home has one. The furnace is the machine doing the work here, almost all year.
Winter nights average 14°F, and on nights that cold the burner cycles on and off for hours to keep up. Each start puts a load on the igniter, and a worn one stops lighting the burner right when the cold sets in. Most furnaces in Butte run on gas, and the region has seen 49 winter storms over the past ten years. When a storm knocks out power, 18% of Montana households have gone at least 24 hours without it in a single year, and a furnace with an electric ignition or blower will not run until power is back.
- 11 months
- August through June, your system heats
- 14°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 73°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
A new furnace and air conditioner would cut about $100 a year off heating and cooling for a typical Silver Bow County home.
Estimates for a typical Silver Bow County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Montana fuel prices and NOAA climate normals. Your home will differ.
Repair makes sense when one part has failed.
Replacement makes sense when the furnace's heat exchanger is cracked, the air conditioner's compressor has failed, or repairs keep coming.
Montana requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
Montana licenses HVAC contractors through the Department of Labor and Industry. That license belongs to the contractor, not to the job, so it covers them across every repair rather than being issued job by job. Montana also draws a line at $2,500. Work under that amount does not need a licensed contractor at all.
A heating and cooling repair can land on either side of that line depending on what it costs. If the job runs above $2,500, the contractor doing it needs to hold that state license. If it falls under, Montana does not require one for this particular repair.
Source: Montana Legislature
- Why is my heat not working?
- Start with the thermostat and the power to the furnace before you assume the worst. Check that the thermostat is set to heat and a few degrees above room temperature, and that the switch on the furnace itself, the one that looks like a light switch, is on. A dead furnace is often a tripped breaker or a blown fuse, so check the panel too. If the furnace runs but you get no flame, or it shuts off after a few seconds, that points to the igniter or the flame sensor, and those need a contractor. Winter nights here average 14°F, so a furnace that will not stay lit is not something to sit on.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- Check the filter first. A filter clogged with dust chokes the airflow across the coil, and the coil can ice over, so the air coming out feels warm even though the system is running. Check the outdoor unit too, since leaves or debris packed against it will stop it from shedding heat. If the filter is clean and the outdoor unit is clear and you are still not getting cold air, the system likely needs refrigerant or has an electrical fault, and that is a job for a licensed contractor.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Check the thermostat settings, the power switch on the unit, the breaker at the panel, and the filter. Those catch a lot of no-heat and no-cool calls. On a furnace, look for a light on the control board blinking a pattern, since that code tells a contractor what tripped it before they even arrive. If you smell gas at any point, stop checking and leave the house, then call your gas utility. Beyond that, it needs a licensed contractor to diagnose, and Montana requires that license for this kind of work. A contractor will price the job once they see what it needs.