HVAC Repair in Gallup, NM
Homes here need heat from October through May and cooling from July through August. If your system 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.
Ten months of work a year for your system
Gallup asks a lot of a furnace. Heat runs from October through May, and on winter nights that average 18°F, the burner is cycling on and off most of the night to keep up. Every one of those cycles puts wear on the igniter and the flame sensor, and when one of them finally gives out, the furnace either won't light or won't stay lit.
Summer is short here, just July and August, with afternoons averaging 85°F. That is not the kind of heat that pushes a compressor hard for months, but it is still enough to expose a system that has a low refrigerant charge or a weak capacitor going into the season. Add in the wind. Mckinley County has logged 64 damaging wind events over the past ten years, along with 44 winter storms, and either one can knock out power or rattle loose the connections your furnace and AC depend on to start.
- 8 months
- October through May, your system heats
- 2 months
- July through August, it cools
- 18°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 85°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
New Mexico requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
New Mexico's license comes from the Construction Industries Division. It means the contractor has been tested and is on record with the state, not that any one job was signed off on separately. The license covers the contractor, so the same license follows them from one repair to the next rather than being issued fresh each time.
For a repair on your heating and cooling system, that license is the thing standing behind the work. Whoever comes out to fix it should be able to show that same state license, held by the business or the person doing the job, not something specific to this visit.
Source: New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department
- Why is my heat not working?
- Start with the thermostat, then the power to the furnace, since those cause more no-heat calls than the furnace itself. Check that the thermostat is set to heat and the temperature is above room temperature. Check your breaker panel for a tripped breaker, and make sure the switch that looks like a light switch near the furnace is on. At 18°F on a winter night, a furnace that will not fire needs a contractor out quickly, since a home can lose heat fast at that temperature.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- If the blower is running but the air is not cold, check the air filter first. A filter clogged with dust blocks airflow across the coil, and that can freeze the coil and cut cooling to nothing until it thaws. Also check that the outdoor unit is running and not surrounded by leaves, grass clippings or anything blocking the fan. If the filter is clean and the outdoor unit sounds normal but the air still is not cold, the system likely needs a contractor to check refrigerant charge or the coil itself.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Check the thermostat settings, the breaker panel, and the air filter, since these cause a large share of no-heat and no-cool calls. Make sure the thermostat is set correctly and has working batteries if it uses them. Look for a tripped breaker or a switch near the unit that may have been bumped off. Pull the filter and hold it up to a light. If you cannot see light through it, replace it. After a storm, also check that nothing has fallen on or blocked the outdoor unit. If everything checks out and the system still is not working, a licensed contractor will need to diagnose it.