Furnace Repair in Salem, NJ
Furnaces here run from October through April. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Salem County will get in touch.
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Salem winters keep your furnace working long hours
October through April, seven months of the year, your furnace is what keeps the house livable. On nights that average 28°F from December through February, it cycles on and off for hours at a stretch, and each cycle puts wear on the igniter and the parts that get the burner lit. When one of those parts finally gives out, you will notice it as a furnace that clicks and tries but will not catch, or one that runs cold air before shutting off.
Salem County has also seen 73 damaging wind events and 12 winter storms over the past ten years, and across New Jersey 11% of households lost power for a day or more in 2024. A furnace that runs on gas still needs electricity to run its blower and controls, so when the power goes out in the middle of a cold night, the heat goes with it.
- 7 months
- October through April, your furnace is on duty
- 28°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 12 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 Salem County home.
Estimates for a typical Salem 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 licenses HVAC contractors through the State Board of Examiners of Heating, Ventilating, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration (HVACR) Contractors. That means the state tested the contractor and keeps a record of them. The license belongs to the contractor, not to any single job, and no town in New Jersey can require its own separate license on top of it.
Because the state license is what stands behind the person doing the work, that license is what to rely on for a furnace repair in Salem County. Gas furnace work means checking the gas connection and the venting, since a bad connection there is the dangerous part of the job. That falls under the same state license, not a separate inspection. Close to half the homes in Salem County heat with gas, so this is not a rare repair here.
Sources: New Jersey Legislature · New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs
- Why won't my furnace turn on?
- The most common reason is the thermostat isn't calling for heat the way you expect, either from dead batteries or a setting that got bumped. After that, check the power switch on the furnace itself and the breaker in your panel, since a tripped breaker will shut the whole unit down. If those are fine, the furnace may be stopping on a safety switch, which is something a contractor needs to look at and diagnose in person.
- Why is my furnace blowing cold air?
- Most often the blower is running before the burners have caught up, which is normal for the first minute or so after a cycle starts. If cold air keeps coming, the igniter may be failing to light the burners at all, so the blower is just moving unheated air through the ducts. A dirty filter can also make this worse by cutting airflow. A contractor can tell you which one it is.
- Why won't my furnace pilot light stay lit?
- A pilot light that won't stay lit is usually the thermocouple, the small sensor that tells the gas valve the flame is burning. When it wears out or sits out of position, the valve reads no flame and shuts the gas off even though the pilot was lit a moment ago. Wind or a draft in the flue can also blow it out. If relighting it doesn't hold, the thermocouple likely needs replacing.