HVAC Repair in Bismarck, ND
Homes here need heat from September through May and cooling from July through August. If your system quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Burleigh County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Eleven months of work, most of it in the cold
Your furnace in Bismarck runs from September through May, and on winter nights that average 5 below zero it cycles on and off for hours to hold the house steady. Every start puts wear on the igniter and the ignition control board. When one of those fails on a cold night, the furnace won't light at all.
Summer asks less but still asks something. Afternoons averaging 80°F bring the air conditioner on for July and August, right after nine months of heating on the other end. That leaves the equipment idle only one month a year. Burleigh County has also seen 27 winter storms and 96 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and a power outage during one can knock out a furnace's ignition system along with the lights.
- 9 months
- September through May, your system heats
- 2 months
- July through August, it cools
- 5°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 80°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new furnace and air conditioner would cut about $120 a year off heating and cooling for a typical Burleigh County home.
Estimates for a typical Burleigh County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, North Dakota 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.
North Dakota requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The state license is issued to the contractor by the Secretary of State, not to the individual job. It means the contractor as a business is on record with the state, not that each repair is separately approved.
In North Dakota, work under $4,000 does not need a licensed contractor. Whether that applies to your repair depends on what the job turns out to cost, not on the fact that it involves your furnace or your air conditioner. Above that amount, the license is what stands behind the work.
Sources: North Dakota Legislative Branch · North Dakota Secretary of State
- Why is my heat not working?
- Most of the time it comes down to the thermostat, the igniter, or the pilot light. Check that the thermostat is set to heat and the temperature is above room temperature, and check that the furnace has power at the breaker. If you have a gas furnace, look for a light on the control board that blinks in a pattern, since that pattern tells a contractor what shut it down before they even arrive. At 5°F outside, a furnace that will not start needs attention the same day, not the same week.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- Check the air filter first. A filter clogged with dust blocks airflow across the coil, and without enough airflow the coil can freeze up and stop cooling the air even though the blower keeps running. Also check that outdoor unit is not covered in leaves or grass clippings, since it needs open airflow to release heat outside. If the filter is clean and the outdoor unit is clear and the house still is not cooling, the refrigerant charge or a component inside the unit needs a contractor to check it.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Start with the thermostat. Confirm it is set to heat or cool as needed, the batteries are not dead, and the temperature setting is actually above or below the room temperature. Then check the breaker for the furnace or air conditioner, since a tripped breaker looks like a dead system but takes seconds to fix. Check the air filter and replace it if it is gray or clogged, since restricted airflow is behind a lot of no-heat and no-cool calls. If the outdoor unit will not run, check that nothing is blocking it and that any nearby disconnect switch is pushed in. A contractor will still need to price and diagnose anything beyond this, but these checks rule out the simplest causes first.