Furnace Repair in Waterbury, CT
Furnaces here run from October through May. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Waterbury will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Eight months of heat wears a furnace down
Waterbury needs the furnace running from October through May. That is eight months of the year, most of it on nights that average 22°F. A furnace built for that kind of stretch cycles on and off constantly to keep up, and every cycle puts wear on the igniter and the burner.
A lot of homes here still heat with fuel oil, and an oil furnace depends on clean fuel and a clean nozzle to fire right. When either one is fouled, the burner struggles to light or shuts off on its own. Add in a winter storm that knocks out power, and a furnace that was already straining has no way to run at all until the power and the parts are both back.
- 8 months
- October through May, your furnace is on duty
- 22°F
- the average winter night it heats against
NOAA 1991–2020 monthly normals
Connecticut requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
Connecticut licenses HVAC contractors through the Department of Consumer Protection. That license is tied to the contractor, not to any one job, so it tells you this contractor was tested and has a record on file with the state, not that this particular repair was inspected or signed off.
For a furnace repair, that license is what stands behind the person working on your gas line and burner. Gas is the dangerous part of this job, and the state's licensing is what puts a name and a record behind whoever is doing that work in your home.
Sources: Connecticut General Assembly · Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection
- Why won't my furnace turn on?
- Most often the thermostat isn't calling for heat, or a safety switch has shut the furnace down. Check that the thermostat is set below room temperature and has power, and check the switch on the furnace itself, it looks like a light switch and needs to be on. If those are fine, the igniter may have failed or the flame sensor may be dirty, both common reasons a furnace won't start. With homes here needing heat from October through May, a furnace that won't turn on needs a contractor licensed by the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection to look at it soon.
- Why is my furnace blowing cold air?
- Check your thermostat fan setting first. If it's set to 'on' instead of 'auto', the blower runs continuously, including between heating cycles when the air feels cool. If the fan is set to auto and you're still getting cold air, the furnace may be failing to ignite even though the blower is running, or the flame sensor may be shutting it off shortly after startup. A furnace that runs but doesn't heat isn't something to wait out with winter lows here averaging 22°F, so have a licensed contractor check it.
- Why won't my furnace pilot light stay lit?
- A pilot light that won't stay lit is usually a worn thermocouple, the small sensor that tells the gas valve the flame is burning. When it wears out, it fails to signal the flame is present, so the gas valve shuts off the pilot as a safety measure. A draft blowing out the flame or a dirty pilot orifice can also cause this. This is a gas component, so have a licensed HVAC contractor replace the part rather than relighting it repeatedly.