HVAC Repair in Hillsboro, OR
If your system quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Washington County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Nine months of heat, and a furnace that rarely gets a break
Your furnace in Hillsboro works from October through June. Winter nights average 34°F, mild enough that people forget how much the burner is cycling on and off to hold the house steady. Every start puts wear on the igniter and the sensor that tells it the flame caught. When one of those parts finally gives out, the furnace won't light at all.
Summer afternoons here only average 76°F, so the air conditioner isn't working hard most years. That means a refrigerant leak or a failing capacitor can sit unnoticed until the first real hot stretch, when the system can't keep up and you find out the hard way.
Washington County has had its share of damaging wind. When the power drops, a gas furnace with a standing pilot will still light, but most furnaces need electricity to run the blower and controls, so heat stops until power comes back.
- 9 months
- October through June, your system heats
- 34°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 76°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
A new furnace and air conditioner would cut about $120 a year off heating and cooling for a typical Washington County home.
Estimates for a typical Washington County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Oregon 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.
Oregon requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
Oregon licenses HVAC contractors through the Construction Contractors Board. The license is held by the contractor, not tied to any one job, and it means the state tested that contractor and keeps a record of them. Work under $1,000 falls outside that requirement.
A repair to a furnace or air conditioner is the kind of job the license covers. The contractor working on your system is the one the Construction Contractors Board tested and has on file, and that record is what stands behind the work.
Source: Oregon Legislative Assembly
- Why is my heat not working?
- Start with the thermostat. Make sure it is set to heat, not just fan, and that the temperature is set above the room reading. If the thermostat looks right, check your breaker panel and any switch near the furnace itself, since a tripped breaker or a flipped switch will shut the whole system down. Gas furnaces also have an igniter that wears out over time, and if it fails the furnace will run but never produce heat. With winter nights here averaging 34°F, a furnace that will not fire is worth getting looked at quickly.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- Check the air filter first. A filter clogged with dust blocks airflow across the coil, and when that happens the coil can freeze over and stop cooling the air even though the unit keeps running. Look at the outdoor unit too. If the coil or the fan is covered in debris, it cannot release heat the way it needs to. If the filter is clean and the outdoor unit is clear, the system likely needs a contractor to check the refrigerant charge, which is not something to test at home.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Check the thermostat settings, the batteries in it if it has any, and the breaker for the system. Check the air filter and replace it if it is dirty, since a blocked filter causes problems in both heating and cooling. Look at any switch near the furnace or the outdoor unit to make sure nothing was accidentally shut off. If the system still is not working after that, it needs a licensed contractor to diagnose it, and they will price the job once they see what it needs.