Heat Pump Repair in Anniston, AL
Homes here need heat from November through March and cooling from May through September. If your system quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Calhoun County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Ten months of work, most years
Your heat pump runs from November through March to keep the house warm, then switches over and runs May through September to keep it cool. That is ten months a year with barely a break, and the two months left don't give it much rest either.
Winter nights here average 34°F, mild enough that the system leans on it constantly rather than cycling hard, and summer afternoons average 89°F on the other side. That kind of steady demand wears on the reversing valve, the part that switches the system between heating and cooling. Almost two thirds of homes here heat with electricity, which usually means the heat pump, so when it stops working there is often no backup keeping the house comfortable. Add in the wind, 57 damaging wind events here over the past ten years, and outdoor units and their electrical connections take a beating too.
- 5 months
- November through March, your system heats
- 5 months
- May through September, it cools
- 34°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 89°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
Alabama requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The Alabama Board of Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Contractors issues that license, and it covers the contractor as a business, not the specific repair at your house. It tells you this person or business met the state's bar to work in the trade at all.
A heat pump repair means opening the refrigerant side of the system, and federal law requires whoever does that to hold EPA Section 608 certification, in every state, Alabama included. The state license and the federal certification answer different questions. One says the contractor is allowed to work in the trade here. The other says the technician handling the refrigerant is trained to do it without venting it into the air or damaging the system.
Source: Alabama Board of Heating, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors
- Why is my heat pump blowing cold air?
- In heat mode, air from the vents is naturally cooler than your skin, so it can feel cold even when the system is working right. If the air feels truly cold, not just cool, the unit may be stuck in defrost, low on refrigerant, or the reversing valve may have failed to switch over. A thermostat set to "emergency heat" will also blow air that never gets warm, since that setting bypasses the heat pump entirely. Check the thermostat mode first, then have a contractor check the reversing valve and refrigerant charge if the setting looks right.
- Why is there ice on my heat pump?
- Some frost on the outdoor unit in winter is normal, and the system clears it on its own through a defrost cycle every so often. Ice becomes a problem when it builds up thick and stays, covering the coil or the fan. That usually means the defrost control has failed, airflow across the coil is blocked, or the refrigerant charge is off. With winter lows here averaging 34°F, the outdoor unit runs its defrost cycle often, so a contractor should check it if ice is not melting between cycles.
- Why is my heat pump running but not cooling?
- The unit is running but the compressor may not be, and the compressor is what actually moves heat out of your home. It could also mean the refrigerant is low, the outdoor coil is caked with dirt or debris, or the filter is clogged enough to choke off airflow. Check the filter first, since that is the one thing worth ruling out yourself. If the filter is clean and air still is not cooling, a contractor will need to check the refrigerant charge and the compressor.