HVAC Repair in Alamogordo, NM
Homes here need heat from October through April and cooling from June through September. If your system quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Otero County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Eleven months of work, most years
Alamogordo only gets a break from heating or cooling for about a month a year. From October through April the furnace is carrying the load, and on winter nights that average 28°F it cycles on and off for hours at a stretch. Every start puts wear on the igniter and the ignition control, and those are the parts that tend to go first, usually in the coldest part of the night when the burner won't light at all.
Then summer flips the job to the air conditioner, with afternoons averaging 89°F from June through September. The compressor and the capacitor that starts it take the strain during those months, and a weak capacitor often shows up as the outdoor unit humming but not starting, or the air blowing warm by mid-afternoon. Wind is part of the picture too. Otero County has logged 83 damaging wind events over the past ten years, enough to knock loose an outdoor unit's wiring or debris into the coil.
- 7 months
- October through April, your system heats
- 4 months
- June through September, it cools
- 28°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 89°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new furnace and air conditioner would cut about $90 a year off heating and cooling for a typical Otero County home.
Estimates for a typical Otero County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, New Mexico 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.
New Mexico requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The Construction Industries Division tests contractors before it licenses them, and it keeps a record of who holds that license. The license belongs to the contractor, not to the job, so the same one covers a repair in Otero County or anywhere else in New Mexico.
Because the state licenses the contractor, that license is what stands behind the repair on your system. It tells you the person doing the work was tested and is on record with the state, including for the gas connections and refrigerant lines that repair involves.
Source: New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department
- Why is my heat not working?
- Start with the thermostat. If the screen is blank or the temperature won't change, check the batteries before anything else. If the thermostat looks fine, listen for the furnace trying to start. A furnace that clicks a few times and shuts off usually has a dirty flame sensor or an igniter that's failed. If you hear nothing at all, check the breaker and the furnace's power switch, it looks like a light switch and sits on or near the unit. Winters here run cold, down to 28°F on average overnight from December through February, so a furnace that's short cycling or not firing needs a contractor licensed through New Mexico's Construction Industries Division to look at it soon.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- Check the air filter first. A filter packed with dust chokes off airflow, and the system can run for hours without bringing the house down. If the filter's clean, go outside and look at the condenser. Dirt or leaves stacked against the coil stop it from releasing the heat the system pulls out of your home. If the filter and condenser both look fine and the air coming from the vents isn't cold, the system likely needs a licensed contractor to check the refrigerant charge. That's not something to test yourself. Afternoons here hit 89°F through summer, so a system that's running without cooling is worth getting looked at before the next hot stretch.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Check the thermostat settings and batteries first. It sounds obvious, but a thermostat set to the wrong mode or a dead battery stops the whole system for no real reason. Next, check the breaker box. Storms are common enough here, 83 damaging wind events over the last ten years, that a tripped breaker after bad weather isn't unusual. Look at the air filter too. One that's dark with dust restricts airflow and can make a furnace or air conditioner seem broken when it just can't breathe. If the outdoor unit has leaves or debris piled against it, clear that away. Past that, a licensed HVAC contractor can diagnose what's actually wrong.