HVAC Repair in Easton, MD
Homes here need heat from October through April and cooling from June through September. If your system quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Talbot County will get in touch.
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Eleven months of work, most years
Talbot County gives a heating and cooling system about one month off a year. Heat runs October through April. Cooling runs June through September. That is eleven months of starting and stopping, with barely a break between.
Winter nights here average 29°F, so a heat pump's backup heat or a furnace burner is cycling on and off most of the night, all winter. Summer afternoons near 86°F push the compressor to run long stretches to keep the house cool. Most homes here heat with electricity, so that strain falls on the compressor and the electric heating elements. Ten years of records show 93 damaging wind events and 9 winter storms in this area, and last year 11% of Maryland households lost power for a full day or more. An outage like that cuts heat or cooling right when the system is working hardest to keep up.
- 7 months
- October through April, your system heats
- 4 months
- June through September, it cools
- 29°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 86°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
Maryland requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The Maryland Board of Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Contractors issues that license, and it tests the contractor before granting it. The board keeps a record of who holds one. That license belongs to the contractor, not to any single job, so the same license covers your repair and the next homeowner's install.
Because Maryland licenses at the contractor level, that license is what stands behind whoever works on your heating and cooling system in Talbot County. It is not something issued fresh for this repair. It is proof that the contractor doing the work was tested and is on record with the state before they ever showed up at your door.
Sources: Maryland General Assembly · Maryland Department of Labor
- Why is my heat not working?
- The first thing to check is the thermostat, then the power to the furnace itself. If the thermostat is set below room temperature and still nothing runs, look at the breaker and the furnace switch, which looks like a regular light switch near the unit. A pilot light that has gone out or an igniter that has failed will also stop the furnace from firing, and neither is something to try to relight or replace yourself. With winter nights here averaging 29°F, a furnace that will not start is worth calling in the same day.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- Start with the air filter. A filter clogged with dust blocks airflow across the indoor coil, and when there is not enough air moving over it, that coil can freeze even when the air outside is 86°F. Check the outdoor unit too, since leaves, grass clippings or a fence too close to it will choke off airflow the same way. If the filter is clean and the outdoor unit has room to breathe, the problem is more likely low refrigerant or a failing part, and that calls for a contractor to check pressures and diagnose it properly.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Check the thermostat first. Make sure it is set to heat or cool as needed and that the batteries are not dead, since a blank display often is the whole problem. Next check the breaker for the system and, for a furnace, the switch near the unit that looks like a light switch. Then look at the air filter, since one packed with dust will choke off airflow to both a furnace and an air conditioner. If all of that checks out and the system still is not working, the issue is inside the unit, and a licensed HVAC contractor will need to diagnose it.