Furnace Repair in Gallup, NM
Furnaces here run from October through May. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers McKinley County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Eight months of heat, and cold nights that push it hard
Gallup needs heat from October through May. That is eight months a year the furnace has to work, and on winter nights that average 18°F, it runs long and often to keep up. Every cycle puts wear on the igniter and the flame sensor, the parts that start the burner and confirm it lit. Over enough cold nights, one of them gives out and the furnace stops firing.
McKinley County has also seen 44 winter storms and 64 damaging wind events over the past ten years. Wind like that can knock out power, and across New Mexico, 13% of households lost power for 24 hours or more in 2024. A furnace without power will not ignite even if every part inside it is fine, and when the power comes back, some units need to be reset by hand before they will run again.
- 8 months
- October through May, your furnace is on duty
- 18°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 44 winter storms
- in ten years, the nights a failure hurts most
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
New Mexico requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The Construction Industries Division licenses HVAC contractors in New Mexico, and the license belongs to the contractor, not to any one job. That means the state tested this contractor before letting them work, and there's a record of who they are. It doesn't mean the state inspects every furnace repair that gets done.
For a furnace repair, the license is what stands behind the person doing the work. On a gas furnace, the connection is the part that makes the job dangerous if it's done wrong, and the contractor's license is the state's record that they were tested to do this kind of work before they were allowed to take it on.
Source: New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department
- Why won't my furnace turn on?
- Most often it's the thermostat, the power supply, or the igniter. Check that the thermostat is set to heat and the temperature is above room temperature, and check the breaker for the furnace. If those look fine, the igniter may have failed, or a safety switch may be holding the furnace off because of an airflow or venting problem. With winter lows around 18°F here, a furnace that won't start is worth getting looked at the same day.
- Why is my furnace blowing cold air?
- The furnace is likely still warming up, or something is stopping it from heating the air it's pushing out. A few minutes of cool air at startup is normal while the heat exchanger comes up to temperature. If it keeps blowing cold, the igniter or flame sensor may not be lighting the burners, or the filter may be so clogged that the furnace is overheating and shutting the burners off as a safety measure while the blower keeps running.
- Why won't my furnace pilot light stay lit?
- The thermocouple is the usual reason, since its job is sensing the flame and it can fail or drift out of position. A draft blowing across the pilot, a dirty pilot orifice, or a bad gas valve can also keep it from staying lit. This is a repair for a licensed contractor, since it involves the gas valve and safety controls, and New Mexico requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license through the Construction Industries Division.