HVAC Repair in Albany, OR
If your system quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Linn County will get in touch.
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Ten months of heat, and not much room for it to fail
Your furnace in Linn County runs September through June. That is ten months of the year it has to work, with only a short break in summer. Winter nights average 32°F, so on the coldest ones the burner is cycling on and off for hours, and every cycle puts wear on the igniter and the burner itself. When one of those parts finally gives out, it usually happens on a cold night, not a mild one.
More than half the homes here heat with electricity, so when the power goes, the heat goes with it. Linn County has seen six winter storms and four damaging wind events over the past ten years, and statewide, a fifth of households lost power for at least a full day in 2024. A furnace or heat pump that is already worn has less to give when it comes back on after an outage like that.
- 10 months
- September through June, your system heats
- 32°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 75°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
Oregon requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The license is held by the contractor, not issued job by job. It covers the business doing your repair rather than any single work order. Oregon puts these contractors on file with the Construction Contractors Board, which means the state has tested and tracked whoever takes on your job. One exception exists. Work under $1,000 does not require a licensed contractor.
For a repair like this, that license is what stands behind the person working on your system. It tells you the contractor was tested by the state and is on record there, not just that the business exists on paper.
Source: Oregon Legislative Assembly
- Why is my heat not working?
- Start with the thermostat. Check that it's set to heat and the set temperature is above room temperature, and if it runs on batteries, swap those first. If the thermostat looks right, check your breaker panel for a tripped breaker, since a furnace or heat pump that lost power will not start at all. A dirty filter can also shut a furnace down as a safety measure, so look at it and replace it if it's gray or clogged. If none of that brings the heat back, the igniter, the flame sensor, or the circuit board may be at fault, and those need a contractor to diagnose.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- If air is moving but it's not cold, the problem is usually with the refrigerant side or the airflow, not the fan. A dirty filter chokes off airflow across the indoor coil and can ice it up, so check that first. If the filter is clean, look at the outdoor unit and clear away any leaves, grass clippings, or debris blocking it. A system that keeps running without ever cooling the air often has a refrigerant leak, and that's not something to chase down yourself. It needs a contractor with gauges to find the leak and recharge the system properly.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Check the thermostat first, both the setting and the batteries if it has them. Then check your breaker panel, since a tripped breaker will stop a furnace, air handler, or heat pump cold. Look at the filter next and replace it if it's dirty, because restricted airflow causes problems that look like bigger failures than they are. Outside, make sure nothing is blocking the outdoor unit. If you've checked all of that and the system still isn't working right, a contractor will need to look at it directly and can price the fix once they know what's wrong.