Furnace Repair in Elizabeth, NJ
Furnaces here run from October through April. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Union County will get in touch.
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Seven months of hard use on your furnace
Elizabeth needs heat from October through April. That is seven months a year your furnace is cycling on and off. On winter nights that average 26°F, it runs long and hard to keep the house warm. Most homes here heat with gas, so the igniter is lighting the burner and the blower motor is pushing warm air through the ducts, night after night, for most of the year.
All that cycling adds up. The igniter wears with every start. The blower motor logs hours few other parts in the house match. When one of them finally gives out, you notice fast. The furnace runs but no heat comes out. Or it will not start at all, right when you need it most.
- 7 months
- October through April, your furnace is on duty
- 26°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 82%
- of homes here heat with gas, so most furnaces here burn gas
- 33 winter storms
- in ten years, the nights a failure hurts most
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new furnace would cut about $150 a year off heating for a typical Union County home.
Estimates for a typical Union County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, New Jersey 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.
New Jersey requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
New Jersey tests and records the contractor, not the job itself, so the license that covers this repair is the same one that covers the next contractor's next job. The State Board of Examiners of Heating, Ventilating, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors keeps that record. Because the license comes from the state, no town in Union County can require its own license on top of it or in place of it.
That license is what stands behind the person working on the furnace, wherever in Union County the home happens to be. The rule does not change from one address to the next, and it does not depend on anything the town decides.
Sources: New Jersey Legislature · New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs
- Why won't my furnace turn on?
- Start with the thermostat. Check that it's set to heat, the temperature is set above room temperature, and the display is lit. If the thermostat looks dead, check your breaker panel and any furnace power switch, since a tripped breaker or a switch bumped off will stop the furnace cold. Gas furnaces also need a pilot light or working igniter, so if power and settings check out, the ignition system may be the problem. With winter nights here averaging 26°F, a furnace that won't start is worth calling in a contractor the same day rather than waiting it out.
- Why is my furnace blowing cold air?
- Most often this means the furnace hasn't reached temperature yet and the blower has started before the heat exchanger warms up. That's normal for a minute or two after a cycle starts. If cold air keeps blowing well after that, the igniter or flame sensor may be failing to light the burners, or the furnace could be overheating and shutting off its burners while the blower keeps running. A dirty filter can cause that overheating, so check it first. If changing the filter doesn't help, have a contractor look at the ignition system before the next cold stretch.
- Why won't my furnace pilot light stay lit?
- A pilot that won't stay lit usually points to a weak or dirty thermocouple, the small sensor that tells the gas valve the flame is burning. If it can't sense the flame, it shuts the gas off as a safety measure, even when the pilot is actually lit. A draft blowing across the pilot or a partly clogged pilot orifice can cause the same thing. Cleaning or adjusting the thermocouple sometimes fixes it, but if it keeps happening, the part likely needs replacing. Homes here rely on heat from October through April, so a pilot that won't hold is worth fixing before the next cold stretch rather than relighting it every day.