HVAC Repair in Missoula, MT
If your system quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Missoula County will get in touch.
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Missoula asks a furnace to run ten months a year
September through June, your furnace is the thing standing between you and a 17°F night. That is most of the year spent cycling on and off, and every start puts wear on the igniter and the burner. When one of those parts finally gives out, it tends to happen on the coldest nights, because that is when the furnace is working hardest.
Summer here only asks for afternoons in the mid-70s, so the air conditioner gets a much easier ten months off. But when the power goes out, and it does here, storms and wind events have hit this area hard over the past decade, a furnace with electric ignition won't restart on its own once the power comes back unless the system is set up to allow it. If your house felt colder than it should after an outage, that is often why.
- 10 months
- September through June, your system heats
- 17°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 74°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 Missoula County home.
Estimates for a typical Missoula 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 tests HVAC contractors before granting a license, and the Department of Labor and Industry keeps a record of who holds one. That license belongs to the contractor, not the job, so it doesn't get reissued or checked job by job once it's granted. Montana also draws a line at $2,500. Repairs under that amount don't need a licensed contractor at all.
A heating and cooling repair can fall on either side of that line. If the job costs less than $2,500, the state's license requirement doesn't apply to it, and nothing here fills that gap. If it costs more, the license is what stands behind the person doing the work, tested and on record with the state.
Source: Montana Legislature
- Why is my heat not working?
- Start with the thermostat. Check that it is set to heat and the temperature is set above the room temperature, then check the breaker or fuse for the furnace. If it has a pilot light, see if it is lit. If your furnace uses an igniter instead, listen for it trying to start. If you hear clicking or a brief hum and then nothing, the igniter or flame sensor likely needs attention. With winter nights here averaging 17°F, a furnace that will not stay running needs a contractor soon rather than later.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- Check the air filter first. A clogged filter chokes off airflow across the coil, and when that happens the coil can freeze over and stop cooling the air even though the blower keeps running. Check the outdoor unit too. If the coil out there is caked with dirt or grass clippings it cannot release heat the way it needs to. If the filter is clean and the outdoor coil looks clear, the system may be low on refrigerant, and that calls for a contractor with gauges to check it properly.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Check the thermostat settings, the breaker, and the air filter first. Make sure the thermostat is set correctly and has power, since a dead battery or a wrong setting looks like a bigger problem than it is. Check the breaker panel for a tripped switch. Pull the filter and hold it up to the light. If you cannot see through it, replace it. If the outdoor unit has a shutoff switch nearby, make sure it has not been bumped off. If all of that checks out and the system still is not working right, Montana requires a licensed contractor for this kind of repair, and they will price the job once they see the house.