HVAC Repair in Midland, 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 Midland County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Eleven months of work a year, with almost no break
Your furnace runs from October through May here, and the nights it works hardest average 18°F. At that temperature it cycles on and off for hours at a stretch, and every cycle puts a load on the igniter and the blower motor. Come June the same system has to switch over and cool the house through afternoons near 81°F, then by October it's back to heating again. There are only a few weeks a year when nothing is asked of it.
Midland County has had 15 winter storms and 50 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and statewide over a third of households lost power for a day or more in 2024. When the power drops in the middle of winter and comes back hours later, a furnace with a bad igniter or a failed control board won't restart on its own. Most homes here heat with gas, so it's usually those electrical parts, not the gas supply, that decide whether the house warms back up.
- 8 months
- October through May, your system heats
- 3 months
- June through August, it cools
- 18°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 81°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 Midland County home.
Estimates for a typical Midland 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 tests contractors before it licenses them and keeps a record of who holds one, through the Board of Mechanical Rules. The license belongs to the contractor, not to any one job, so it travels with them from one house to the next rather than being issued fresh for your repair.
For a heating and cooling repair, that license is what stands behind the work. Whoever comes to your house to repair your system has been tested by the state and is on record with the Board of Mechanical Rules.
Sources: Michigan Legislature · Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs
- Why is my heat not working?
- Most often it is the igniter, a flame sensor that has picked up a coating of residue, or the thermostat calling for heat but not getting a response. Check that the thermostat is set to heat and the temperature is above room temperature, and check your breaker panel for a tripped switch. If the furnace runs but no warm air comes out, or it will not start at all, that points to a part that needs a contractor to test and replace. At 18°F on a winter night here, this is not one to leave for long.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- If air is moving but it is not cold, the most common causes are a dirty filter blocking airflow, a frozen evaporator coil, or a refrigerant leak. A filter you can check and change yourself. A frozen coil usually means airflow is restricted somewhere, and running the system more will not clear it, so turn it off and let it thaw first. Low refrigerant will not fix itself and needs a contractor to find the leak and recharge the system properly.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Start with the thermostat. Make sure it is set to the right mode and the temperature is actually calling for heat or cooling, and check the batteries if it has a screen that looks dim. Next check your breaker panel for anything tripped, since a reset there can solve the whole problem. Then look at the filter. A clogged filter chokes airflow and can cause both weak heating and weak cooling, and it is the one thing in the system a homeowner can safely inspect and swap out. If those check out and the problem is still there, it is time for a contractor to look at it.