Furnace Repair in Bristol, PA
Furnaces here run from October through May. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Bucks County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Eight months of heat, and nights near 24 degrees
Bristol homes run the furnace from October through May. That is eight months of the burner cycling on and off, and on the coldest nights, when it's averaging 24°F outside, it cycles more often just to hold the temperature. Each start puts wear on the igniter and the parts that get the burner lit.
The area has also seen 40 winter storms and 235 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and statewide, 15% of Pennsylvania households lost power for at least a day in 2024. When the power drops on a cold night, the furnace stops with it. Most furnaces come back on their own once power returns, but if yours doesn't restart, or the house stays cold even after the power's back, that's worth a call.
- 8 months
- October through May, your furnace is on duty
- 24°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 40 winter storms
- in ten years, the nights a failure hurts most
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new furnace would cut about $140 a year off heating for a typical Bucks County home.
Estimates for a typical Bucks County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Pennsylvania fuel prices and NOAA climate normals. Your home will differ.
Repair makes sense when one part has failed and the heat exchanger is sound.
Replacement makes sense when the heat exchanger is cracked or the furnace keeps needing parts.
Pennsylvania requires contractors to register with the state.
That registration puts the business on file with the state and nothing more. Nobody tested this contractor on furnace repair to get that number, and the state does not track how the work turns out once the registration is issued. Bucks County cannot layer on its own HVAC license requirement either, since Pennsylvania does not allow cities and towns to do that, so the registration is the only state-level record that exists here.
On a furnace repair, the part that matters most is the gas connection, and registration does not touch that. Registration confirms the business is on file with the state. It says nothing about who checked the gas line or the venting on this job. Just over a third of homes in Bucks County heat with gas, and that connection is the piece of a furnace repair where the stakes are highest.
Source: Pennsylvania General Assembly
- Why won't my furnace turn on?
- Start with the thermostat. Make sure it's set to heat and the temperature is set above the room temperature, since a setting bumped a degree or two can leave the furnace idle all night. Check the breaker next, since a tripped one will keep the furnace from getting power at all. If the furnace has a standing pilot, look for the flame itself. If those check out and it still won't start, the igniter or a safety switch may be the problem, and that's a job for a contractor to diagnose.
- Why is my furnace blowing cold air?
- Most often this means the blower is running before the burners have caught up, which happens for a short stretch every time the furnace starts. If cold air keeps coming for more than a few minutes, check the filter first, since a clogged one restricts airflow and can cause the furnace to shut its burners off while the fan keeps running. A dirty flame sensor can cause the same pattern, where the igniter fires but the flame doesn't hold. If the filter looks fine, have a contractor look at the burners and flame sensor.
- Why won't my furnace pilot light stay lit?
- This usually points to the thermocouple, the small sensor that tells the gas valve the pilot is burning. When it wears out or sits out of position, it reads no flame even when one is there, and the valve shuts the gas off. A draft blowing across the pilot can cause the same thing, so check whether air is reaching it from a nearby vent or door. If relighting it doesn't hold, the thermocouple likely needs replacing, which is a straightforward fix for a contractor.