HVAC Repair in Rockford, IL
Homes here need heat from October through May and cooling from June through August. If your system quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Winnebago County will get in touch.
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Eleven months of work for your furnace and AC in Winnebago County
Your furnace runs from October through May here, and winter nights average 16°F from December through February. That kind of cold means long burner cycles, night after night, and every start puts wear on the igniter. When it finally gives out, the furnace won't light at all, or it shuts off partway through the cycle, and the house starts losing heat.
Summer is shorter but still asks a lot. Afternoons averaging 82°F push the compressor hard for three straight months, and a system that ran fine in June can start losing cool air by August as the coil wears down. This area has also seen 19 winter storms and 131 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and weather like that can knock out power or damage an outdoor unit. Most furnaces come back on by themselves once power returns, but a damaged condenser or a tripped breaker will not fix itself.
- 8 months
- October through May, your system heats
- 3 months
- June through August, it cools
- 16°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 82°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new furnace and air conditioner would cut about $170 a year off heating and cooling for a typical Winnebago County home.
Estimates for a typical Winnebago County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Illinois 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.
In Illinois, HVAC licensing for homes is left to the cities and towns.
Check whether your city requires a license.
Source: Illinois General Assembly
- Why is my heat not working?
- Start with the thermostat, the filter and the breaker before you assume the worst. If the thermostat is set below room temperature and still nothing happens, check the filter next. A clogged filter chokes airflow and can cause the furnace to shut itself off. If the filter is clean, check the breaker panel, since a tripped breaker will kill power to the furnace with no warning at all. Winter nights here average 16°F, so a gas furnace that will not ignite is worth calling a contractor about right away rather than waiting it out.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- The blower running without cold air points to a few common causes, and one of them you can check yourself. Look at the filter first. A filter packed with dust blocks airflow across the indoor coil, and that coil can ice over, which stops cold air from moving through the ducts at all. If the filter is clean and air is moving but still warm, the system may be low on refrigerant, and that is not something to top off yourself. A contractor will need to find where it is leaking before adding more does any good.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Check the thermostat settings, the filter, and the breaker panel. Make sure the thermostat is set to heat or cool as needed and the batteries are not dead. Pull the filter and hold it up to the light. If you cannot see through it, replace it, since restricted airflow is behind a lot of no-heat and no-cool calls. Check the breaker panel for anything tripped, and if the outdoor unit has a disconnect box nearby, make sure it is pushed in. If all of that checks out and the system still is not working, a contractor will need to look at it.