Furnace Repair in Holland, MI
Furnaces here run from October through May. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Ottawa County will get in touch.
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Eight months of heat, and cold nights to match
Your furnace runs from October through May here, eight months of the year. On winter nights that average 20°F, it cycles on and off for hours at a stretch to hold the house steady. Each start puts a load on the igniter and the parts that get the burner lit. Over enough winters, that part wears out and the furnace stops firing.
Ottawa County has seen 17 winter storms and 35 damaging wind events over the past ten years. Wind like that can push cold air into a house and force the furnace to run longer just to keep up. Across Michigan, more than a third of households lost power for at least a day in 2024, and a furnace without power will not light no matter what shape it is in. Most gas furnaces here restart on their own once power comes back, but if yours does not, that points to a problem worth having checked.
- 8 months
- October through May, your furnace is on duty
- 20°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 84%
- of homes here heat with gas, so most furnaces here burn gas
- 17 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 Ottawa County home.
Estimates for a typical Ottawa County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Michigan 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.
Michigan requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The state tests contractors before they get that license and keeps a record of who holds one. It's issued to the contractor, not the job, so the same license that qualifies them to repair a furnace covers the other mechanical work they take on. It's the Board of Mechanical Rules that stands behind it, not just a business filing.
For a furnace repair, that license is what's accountable for the work done in your house. Most homes in Ottawa County heat with gas, and a furnace repair means someone working on a gas connection, which is the part of the job that has to be right. That's the risk a state license is meant to cover here.
Sources: Michigan Legislature · Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs
- Why won't my furnace turn on?
- Most of the time it's the thermostat not calling for heat, a tripped breaker, or the switch on the furnace itself turned off. That switch looks like a light switch, often on the side of the unit or nearby on a wall, and it's easy to bump. If the breaker keeps tripping, or the furnace still won't start once you've checked those, a contractor needs to look at it. Winter lows here average 20°F, so don't wait long to get it looked at once you've ruled out the simple things.
- Why is my furnace blowing cold air?
- If the air is cold right when the furnace starts up, that's normal. It takes a minute or two for the heat exchanger to warm before the air coming out feels warm. If the blower runs but the air never warms up, the burners may not be lighting, or the igniter has failed. A furnace that runs but never heats needs a contractor, since the parts that light the gas aren't something to troubleshoot yourself.
- Why won't my furnace pilot light stay lit?
- A pilot that won't stay lit usually means the thermocouple has worn out. That's the small sensor that sits in the flame and tells the gas valve it's safe to stay open. When it fails, the valve shuts the gas off as a safety measure, even though the pilot lit fine a moment ago. It's a simple part to replace, but this is gas work, so have a licensed contractor handle it. With most homes here heating on gas and needing it from October through May, it's worth getting fixed rather than relighting it over and over.