Heating & Furnace Repair
Valley nights drop into the 30s more often than out-of-state transplants expect, and heating equipment that sits idle nine months a year fails the first cold week.
Reliable Air repairs gas furnaces, electric resistance heat, and heat pumps throughout the Phoenix metro. Every heating call includes a combustion and safety check — ignition sequence, flame sensor, heat exchanger inspection, and carbon monoxide test — before any repair is quoted. Most no-heat calls are resolved on the first visit.
Heating equipment in Arizona has an unusual failure pattern. Because it sits unused from April through October, the first genuinely cold night of the year produces a wave of no-heat calls — dirty flame sensors, stuck gas valves, cracked igniters, and heat pumps whose reversing valves have seized in cooling position.
Anything involving combustion gets treated as a safety issue first and a comfort issue second. We inspect the heat exchanger, verify the flue draft, and test for carbon monoxide on every gas furnace call. If we find a cracked heat exchanger we will red-tag the unit, and we will show you why.
What a heating service call covers
- Full ignition sequence observation — inducer, pressure switch, igniter, gas valve, flame sensor
- Flame sensor cleaning and microamp signal verification
- Heat exchanger visual inspection and carbon monoxide test
- Gas pressure and burner flame quality check
- Heat pump reversing valve, defrost board, and auxiliary heat staging test
- Limit switch, blower operation, and temperature rise verification against nameplate
Common heating symptoms
- The furnace clicks and tries to light but never ignites
- The system starts, runs briefly, then shuts off — short cycling on limit
- Cold air blows from the registers when the heat is calling
- A heat pump runs constantly but the house stays cool
- A burning or gas odor when the unit first fires
- The carbon monoxide detector sounds when the heat runs
What working with us looks like
Safety triage on the phone
If a CO alarm sounds, leave immediately and call 911 from outside. For a gas smell, evacuate and contact emergency services or your gas utility from a safe location. Do not reenter until responders say it is safe.
Full sequence diagnostic
We watch the unit attempt a start cycle and identify exactly which step in the sequence fails.
Written price, your decision
Flat repair pricing, presented before we start, with the safety findings spelled out.
Repair and combustion verification
After the fix we re-test temperature rise, draft, and CO to confirm the unit is operating safely.
What it costs
Common heating repairs — flame sensors, igniters, pressure switches, capacitors, defrost boards — generally fall between roughly $150 and $500 installed. Heat exchanger or gas valve replacement on an aging furnace usually points toward replacement instead.
Heating & Furnace Repair questions, answered
Why does my furnace blow cold air?
On a gas furnace, the blower running without heat usually means the burners never lit — a dirty flame sensor, a failed igniter, or a tripped pressure switch. On a heat pump, cold air during a heat call often means the reversing valve is stuck or the system has gone into a defrost cycle, which is normal for a few minutes at a time.
Do heat pumps work in Arizona winters?
They work very well here. Heat pumps lose efficiency as outdoor temperatures approach freezing, and the Valley rarely stays below 35°F for long. For most Phoenix-area homes a heat pump is the most economical heating option available, with electric strip heat as backup on the coldest mornings.
How often should a furnace be serviced in Phoenix?
Once a year, ideally in October before the first cold snap. Even with light seasonal use, dust accumulation on the flame sensor and burner assembly is the leading cause of no-heat calls, and it is entirely preventable.
What does a cracked heat exchanger mean?
It means combustion gases, including carbon monoxide, can mix with the air being circulated through your house. It is not repairable. The furnace must be shut down and either the heat exchanger or the entire unit replaced. We will show you the crack and document the CO readings before recommending anything.
Get heating & furnace repair handled today.
Same-day service, honest pricing, and a real human on the line. We have kept Phoenix cool since 1996.
Mon–Sat · 7am–7pm · 24/7 emergency line for no-cool and no-heat calls · ROC 330516 · ROC 264944