Heat Pump Repair in Florence, AL
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 Lauderdale County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Your heat pump works all year in Florence
There's no season off for your heat pump here. It heats from October through April, then switches over and cools from May through September. That's every month, and every month it runs, something in it is wearing down.
Winter nights averaging 32°F mean the system is right at the point where it works hardest to pull heat from the outside air. Summer afternoons averaging 89°F push it just as hard the other way. Add in wind events and winter storms that hit this area, and the outdoor unit takes a beating year-round, from ice on the coil in winter to debris and storm damage from wind. When the outdoor unit struggles, you'll notice the air coming from your vents isn't as warm or as cool as it should be, or the system runs longer than it used to just to keep up.
- 7 months
- October through April, your system heats
- 5 months
- May through September, it cools
- 32°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 license is held by the contractor, not issued job by job, so it is the business and the person running it that the state has on record and tested, not this specific repair. The Alabama Board of Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Contractors is the body that put that license in place.
A heat pump repair almost always means opening the refrigerant side of the system, whether the problem is a leak, a bad valve, or a compressor that isn't cycling right. Anyone who does that work, in Alabama or anywhere else, has to hold EPA Section 608 certification. That's a federal requirement on top of the state license, not a substitute for it, and it exists because refrigerant work is not something a license alone accounts for.
Source: Alabama Board of Heating, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors
- Why is my heat pump blowing cold air?
- In winter this usually means the heat pump is stuck in defrost mode or has switched over to emergency heat by mistake. A heat pump in heating mode should feel warm at the vents, not hot like a furnace, but it should not feel cold either. Check the thermostat setting first, since a switch set to emergency heat or fan-only will blow air without warming it. If the setting looks right and the air still feels cold, the reversing valve may be stuck, and that calls for a contractor to check it.
- Why is there ice on my heat pump?
- A thin layer of frost during a defrost cycle on a cold morning is normal, especially with winter nights here averaging 32°F. The unit should clear that frost on its own every hour or so and run warm again after. Ice that stays, builds up thick, or covers the whole outdoor coil means something is keeping it from defrosting properly, often low refrigerant, a failing defrost sensor, or a fan that has stopped turning. Shut the system off and let the ice melt, then call a contractor rather than running it iced over, since that can damage the compressor.
- Why is my heat pump running but not cooling?
- If the outdoor unit is running but the air coming from the vents is not cool, the most common causes are a dirty filter blocking airflow, an iced-up outdoor coil, or low refrigerant from a leak. With summer afternoons here reaching 89°F, a system fighting a clogged filter or low refrigerant will struggle to keep up and may run long stretches without catching up to the thermostat setting. Check the filter first, since that is something you can look at yourself. If it is clean and the system still is not cooling, the refrigerant charge or a stuck component needs a contractor's gauge to diagnose.