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Heat pumps, furnaces and the rooms that never behave
Most houses on the Eastside are heated by something that was sized for a different house — a different window count, a different family, a different decade. We measure what yours is actually doing.
The system most of this area is moving to
A heat pump heats and cools with the same equipment, and in a mild, damp climate it spends most of the year doing it efficiently. The catch is that it is far less forgiving of bad duct work and bad settings than a gas furnace was.
What we spend our time on: getting the size right, getting the air moving, and setting up the backup heat so it stays off until it is genuinely needed.
- Annual serviceCoil condition, refrigerant behaviour, defrost operation, backup heat staging, airflow and electrical draw — measured and written up.
- RepairsDiagnosed with instruments and priced in writing. Where a repair does not make sense on the age of the unit, we say so and show you the numbers.
- ReplacementSized from the house. The quote includes whatever the ducts need, because leaving that out is how a new system ends up performing like the old one.
The five calls we take most weeks
- The air feels cold
Usually normal, occasionally not. The check goes through it properly, and it costs nothing to run before you book anybody.
- One room never warms up
Nearly always the duct run and the return path rather than the size of the system. We measure airflow at the register before recommending anything.
- The bill jumped
Backup electric heat running when it should not be is the most common cause we find, and it is usually a settings problem rather than a fault.
- Water under the furnace
A blocked condensate drain, or a secondary drain doing the job the primary should be doing. Worth dealing with before it reaches a ceiling.
- It is noisier than it was
Bearings, blower wheels loaded with dust, or a loose panel. A new noise is worth a visit; it rarely gets quieter on its own.
Two calls that do not go in the diary
- A carbon monoxide alarm soundingEverybody out of the house, then call 911 or the gas utility from outside. Not us first, and do not go back in to open windows.
- A smell of gasThe same answer. Leave the appliance alone, get out, and call from outside.
After the emergency services have made the house safe, we will come and find out what caused it. Those are the only two things we ask you not to ring us about first.
For the room the ducts never reached
Bonus rooms over garages, converted basements, offices in a corner of the house, additions built onto a system that was already at its limit. A ductless head is often cheaper and more effective than trying to force more air down an existing run.
It is not always the right answer. Where extending or sealing the duct work would fix it for less, we will say that instead.