HVAC Repair in Columbia, MO
Homes here need heat from October through April and cooling from May through September. If your system quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Boone County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Boone County asks a lot of your system, in both directions
Your furnace works October through April here, seven months of the year, and on nights that average 24°F it runs long and hard to keep up. Those cold starts are what wear out an igniter or crack a heat exchanger. Then summer flips the load the other way. Five months of afternoons near 86°F push the compressor hard, and that is where a low refrigerant charge or a failing capacitor shows up first.
Almost half of homes here heat with gas, so a pilot light or ignition problem is a common call in winter. Boone County also sees its share of wind, 54 damaging wind events over the past ten years, along with 8 winter storms. Wind can knock loose a condenser unit's electrical connection or debris can jam the fan, and ice or a power outage in a winter storm can leave a system unable to restart on its own. Statewide, almost one in five households lost power for a full day or more in 2024, and a system that was already struggling before the outage often needs a service call after.
- 7 months
- October through April, your system heats
- 5 months
- May through September, it cools
- 24°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 86°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new furnace and air conditioner would cut about $210 a year off heating and cooling for a typical Boone County home.
Estimates for a typical Boone County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, Missouri 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.
- Why is my heat not working?
- Start with the thermostat. Make sure it is set to heat and set a few degrees above room temperature, and check that its display is lit. If the display is dark, look at your electrical panel for a tripped breaker. Gas furnaces have a pilot light or an igniter, and if that has failed the furnace will run air but never get warm, or may not turn on at all. With winter nights here dropping to 24°F on average, a furnace that will not fire is worth getting looked at the same day.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- Check your air filter first. A filter clogged with dust blocks airflow across the coil, and a coil that cannot move enough air will ice over and stop cooling even though the blower keeps running. Next look at the outdoor unit and clear away leaves, grass clippings or anything pressed against it, since it needs open airflow to release the heat pulled from your house. If the filter is clean and the outdoor unit is clear, the system likely needs refrigerant checked or a part diagnosed, and that calls for a contractor.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Check the thermostat settings and its batteries first, since a dead thermostat display looks like a dead system. Check your breaker panel for a tripped breaker, especially after a storm. Check the air filter and replace it if it is dark with dust, since a blocked filter causes both weak heat and weak cooling. If the outdoor unit is covered in leaves or debris, clear it. If none of that solves it, a contractor will need to look at the actual equipment.