HVAC Repair in Charlotte, MI
Homes here need heat from October through May and cooling from June through August. If your system quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Eaton County will get in touch.
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Eleven months of work a year, in a place that loses power
Your furnace runs from October through May here. Winter nights average 19°F, so on the coldest ones the burner is cycling on and off most of the night to keep up. Every cycle means another start, and the igniter is the part that wears out from all that starting. When it goes, the furnace won't light at all.
Summer is short, just June through August, but afternoons average 80°F and the air conditioner has to work through all of it in a few months instead of spreading that load out. Eleven winter storms and eleven damaging wind events have hit this area over the past ten years, and more than a third of Michigan households lost power for at least a day in 2024. When power drops and comes back, most furnaces and air conditioners restart on their own. If yours doesn't, that's worth a call.
- 8 months
- October through May, your system heats
- 3 months
- June through August, it cools
- 19°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 80°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new furnace and air conditioner would cut about $160 a year off heating and cooling for a typical Eaton County home.
Estimates for a typical Eaton 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.
Replacement makes sense when the furnace's heat exchanger is cracked, the air conditioner's compressor has failed, or repairs keep coming.
Michigan requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
Michigan issues this license through the Board of Mechanical Rules. The state has tested the contractor and keeps a record of that license, and it belongs to the contractor, not to any one job. It does not get reissued or rechecked each time someone hires them.
For a repair to a heating and cooling system, that license is what stands behind the work. It covers the contractor doing the job, not a separate approval for this particular repair.
Sources: Michigan Legislature · Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs
- Why is my heat not working?
- Start with the thermostat. Make sure it is set to heat and the set temperature is above room temperature, since a setting bumped a degree or two can look like a dead system. Next check the breaker for the furnace and the switch that looks like a light switch near the unit, often mounted on or beside it. If you have gas heat, look at the furnace itself for a blinking light behind a small window, that code tells a contractor what the furnace tried and failed to do. If nothing there explains it, the igniter or the flame sensor is a common failure point on a gas furnace and neither is something to test yourself.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- Check the air filter first. A filter clogged with dust blocks airflow across the indoor coil, and when that happens the coil can ice over so the system runs constantly but the air coming out barely feels cool. Go outside next and look at the outdoor unit. If the fan isn't turning, or the coil and fins are packed with grass clippings or leaves, the unit can't shed heat properly no matter how hard it runs. If the filter is clean and the outdoor unit looks clear, the system may be low on refrigerant, and that needs a contractor with gauges to confirm.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Check the thermostat first, the setting, the mode, and the batteries if it has a screen that's dim or blank. Check the breaker panel for a tripped breaker feeding the furnace or the outdoor condenser. Look at the filter and replace it if it's gray or clogged, since restricted airflow causes problems that look like bigger failures than they are. For gas furnaces, check that the switch near the unit is on and that nothing is blocking the vent pipe outside. If the system still isn't working after that, a contractor can diagnose the rest and price the repair for your specific unit.