HVAC Repair in Scranton, PA
Homes here need heat from September through May and cooling from July through August. If your system quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Lackawanna County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Nine months of heat, two of cooling, and not much rest between
Your furnace is the machine doing the real work here. Winter nights average 19°F from December through February, so on the coldest nights it is cycling on and off for hours, and every start puts wear on the igniter. When that igniter finally gives out, the burner won't light at all and the house goes cold fast.
Summer asks less of your system, just July and August, with afternoons around 78°F. That is still enough for a struggling capacitor or a low refrigerant charge to show up as a house that won't quite cool down. Lackawanna County has also logged 16 winter storms and 127 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and outages knock out power to homes across Pennsylvania often enough that when yours comes back, it's worth checking that the furnace and any thermostat settings came back with it.
- 9 months
- September through May, your system heats
- 2 months
- July through August, it cools
- 19°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 78°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new furnace and air conditioner would cut about $190 a year off heating and cooling for a typical Lackawanna County home.
Estimates for a typical Lackawanna 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.
Replacement makes sense when the furnace's heat exchanger is cracked, the air conditioner's compressor has failed, or repairs keep coming.
Pennsylvania requires contractors to register with the state.
Registration puts a contractor's business on file with the Bureau of Consumer Protection. Nobody tests their work to get on that list. It tells you the business is on record in Pennsylvania, not that the state has checked what they know about a furnace or a condenser.
So on a repair like this, the registration is not what stands behind the work. Lackawanna County cannot layer its own HVAC license on top of the state's rule, since Pennsylvania does not let cities and towns require one. What you are left with, for this job, is the registration and whatever the contractor's own experience amounts to.
Source: Pennsylvania General Assembly
- Why is my heat not working?
- Start with the thermostat. Make sure it is set to heat and the set temperature is above the room temperature, since a setting bumped a degree or two can look like a dead system. Next check the breaker and the furnace switch, which looks like a regular light switch near the unit. If the furnace runs on gas, check that the gas valve is open and, on older units, that the pilot light is still lit. On winter nights here that drop near 19°F, a furnace that will not start needs attention right away, so if these checks do not bring it back, call a contractor.
- 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 ice over, so warm air blows out but the house never cools. While you are there, check that the outdoor unit is not surrounded by grass clippings, leaves or anything blocking its fins. If the filter is clean and the outdoor unit is clear and you still get warm air after a few hours, the system likely has a refrigerant leak or a failing part, and that calls for a contractor to check the coil and the refrigerant charge.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Check the thermostat settings, the breaker, and the air filter, since these cause a lot of no-heat and no-cool calls on their own. Look at the filter and replace it if it is gray with dust. Check that nothing is blocking the vents inside or the outdoor unit outside. If you have been through a storm, since this area has seen 16 winter storms and 127 damaging wind events over the past ten years, check that the outdoor unit was not hit by falling branches or debris before you turn the system back on.