Furnace and heating repair in Rockford

Two situations that skip every other step

Gas odor. Everyone leaves the house. Don't flip lights or start anything electric on the way out. Call the gas utility or 911 once you are outside.

Carbon monoxide alarm. Same drill: get out, then call 911. The CDC notes that CO has no smell and can cause sudden illness and death.

One Rockford-specific habit worth having: after a heavy snow, go look at the two plastic pipes where a high-efficiency furnace vents through the wall. When drifts bury the intake or exhaust, the furnace shuts itself down.

Before booking a visit

1. Thermostat: heat mode, a setpoint higher than the room, batteries that work.
2. Power: the furnace's service switch on, and its breaker not tripped.
3. Filter: a choked one lets the furnace overheat and cut out on a safety limit.
4. Panel door: most furnaces have a safety switch that keeps them off unless the front panel is seated tight.

Typical costs

Fixr's national figures run $349 to $650 for a furnace repair, averaging $485. Igniters and flame sensors fail often and cost little to replace. A cracked heat exchanger, or a dead control board on a furnace that is already old, is where I'd ask for a replacement price before agreeing to the repair.

What the City of Rockford requires

Inside city limits, the City says mechanical contractors need a City of Rockford mechanical license, and its mechanical permit covers furnace, boiler and ductwork installs or replacements. Gas piping goes on its own permit. Ask the company for its City license number and who is pulling the permit; outside the city, each town sets its own rules. Rockford permits and licenses.

Doing the furnace and AC together

Since the cooling coil sits on top of the furnace in most Rockford basements, replacing two old units together is often one visit instead of two. It is also the natural time to compare a heat pump that handles the cooling and part of the heating, with the new furnace as backup. Heat pumps in Rockford.