HVAC Repair in Waterloo, 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 Black Hawk County will get in touch.
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Eleven months of work a year in Waterloo
Your furnace runs from October through May here, and winter nights average 13°F. At that temperature the burner cycles on and off for hours to hold the house at temperature, and each start puts wear on the igniter. When it finally gives out, the furnace won't light at all.
Your air conditioner has a shorter job, June through August, but summer afternoons average 82°F and the compressor runs hard to keep up. Most furnaces here burn gas, and a full third of the year they sit idle waiting for summer. Black Hawk County has seen 23 winter storms and 62 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and storms like that knock out power. When it comes back on, most systems restart on their own. If yours doesn't, the problem is with the system, not the outage.
- 8 months
- October through May, your system heats
- 3 months
- June through August, it cools
- 13°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 $120 a year off heating and cooling for a typical Black Hawk County home.
Estimates for a typical Black Hawk 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 tests the contractor before granting it. What gets licensed is the contractor, not each job, so the same license covers this repair and whatever comes after it.
For a heating and cooling repair, that license is what stands behind the work. It is the board's record of who the contractor is and that they were tested to do this kind of work.
Sources: Iowa Legislature · Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing
- Why is my heat not working?
- Start with the thermostat and the power. If the display is blank, check the breaker, and check for a switch near the furnace that may have been bumped off. A gas furnace still needs power for its igniter and blower, so a dead breaker will stop the whole system even though the flame itself doesn't use electricity. If the power and thermostat check out, listen for the furnace trying to start. Some clicking followed by nothing usually means the igniter or a flame sensor needs a contractor's attention. With winter nights here averaging 13°F, a furnace that's down for even a night is worth calling in on the same day.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- Check the filter first. A filter clogged with dust chokes off airflow, and the coil behind it can freeze up when air can't move past it, so the system runs constantly while the air coming out barely feels cool. If the filter is clean, go outside and look at the outdoor unit. Leaves, grass clippings or a fence built too close can block airflow the same way a dirty filter does. If both of those look fine and the air still isn't cold, the system needs a contractor to check refrigerant levels and the coil itself, especially with summer afternoons here averaging 82°F.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Check the thermostat batteries and setting first. It sounds basic, but a thermostat set to the wrong mode or with dead batteries looks exactly like a bigger problem. Next check the breaker box and any power switch near the furnace or outdoor unit. Iowa has seen 62 damaging wind events and 23 winter storms over the past ten years, and a breaker tripped during one of those is an easy fix compared to what it might look like at first. After that, check the filter. A filter that hasn't been changed in a while restricts airflow enough to cause both heating and cooling complaints. If none of that explains what's going on, a licensed contractor can diagnose the rest. Iowa requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license through the Iowa Plumbing and Mechanical Systems Board, so ask for that license number before any repair work starts.