HVAC Repair in Iowa City, IA
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 Johnson County will get in touch.
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Eleven months of work a year, in weather that swings hard
Your furnace and your air conditioner both earn their keep here. Heat runs October through May, eight months. Cooling picks up in June and holds through August. Only one month, if that, asks nothing of either system.
Winter nights averaging 16°F mean the burner cycles on and off for hours at a stretch, and every cycle puts wear on the igniter and the flame sensor. Summer afternoons near 83°F push the compressor hard on the other end. Add in the storms, 25 winter storms and 87 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and outdoor units and power supply both take a hit. With 15% of Iowa households losing power for a full day or more in 2024, a system that already runs most of the year doesn't get much room to recover before it's asked to start back up.
- 8 months
- October through May, your system heats
- 3 months
- June through August, it cools
- 16°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 83°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new furnace and air conditioner would cut about $120 a year off heating and cooling for a typical Johnson County home.
Estimates for a typical Johnson County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Iowa 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.
Iowa requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The Iowa Plumbing and Mechanical Systems Board issues that license, and it covers the contractor, not each job they take on. Your repair does not get its own license or its own inspection from the board. What you're checking is the contractor behind the work, not the work itself.
For a repair to your heating and cooling system, that license is what stands behind the person doing the work in Iowa.
Sources: Iowa Legislature · Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing
- 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 the temperature is above room level, and check the breaker and the furnace switch, which looks like a light switch near the unit. If those are fine, look at the furnace filter. A filter clogged with dust can choke off airflow until the furnace shuts itself down to protect the heat exchanger. Gas furnaces also need a pilot light or an igniter to work, and either one can fail on its own. At 16°F on a winter night here, a furnace that will not start is worth a same-day call.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- The fan running without cool air usually means the air conditioner side has a problem even though the blower is fine. Check the outdoor unit first. If the fan out there is not spinning, or the coil is caked in ice, the system cannot move heat out of the house no matter how long it runs. A dirty filter can cause this too, by restricting airflow across the indoor coil until it freezes over. Turn the system off and let any ice melt before a contractor looks at it, since running it iced up can damage the compressor.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Check the thermostat, the breaker, and the filter first. Make sure the thermostat is set correctly and has working batteries if it uses them. Check the breaker panel and any switch near the furnace or air handler, since a tripped breaker or a flipped switch will stop the system cold. Pull the filter and hold it up to a light. If you cannot see light through it, replace it, since a blocked filter causes both heating and cooling problems. If the outdoor unit is not running, make sure nothing is blocking it and that the breaker for it is on too. If none of that fixes it, a licensed contractor can diagnose what is left. Iowa requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license through the Iowa Plumbing and Mechanical Systems Board, so ask for that license before letting anyone work on the system.