Heat Pump Repair in Canton, GA
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 Cherokee County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Canton asks a heat pump to run almost year round
From October to April your heat pump is the only thing keeping the house warm, then it switches straight to cooling for summer. That is 12 months of work with barely a break in between. Nights near 33°F in December through February push it to run longer cycles to keep up, and afternoons near 87°F in summer do the same in reverse.
That much runtime wears on the parts that switch the system between heating and cooling, and on the board that controls the switch. When one of those fails, the unit may blow air that is not warm or not cool, or it may stop responding to the thermostat at all. Cherokee County has also seen its share of damaging wind, 149 events over the past ten years, and a hard storm can knock power out long enough to trip a system that does not come back on cleanly by itself.
- 7 months
- October through April, your system heats
- 5 months
- May through September, it cools
- 33°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 87°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
Georgia requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The State Construction Industry Licensing Board issues that license, and it belongs to the contractor, not the job in front of them. It does not get reissued for your heat pump specifically. It is the contractor's standing to do this kind of work at all.
A heat pump repair almost always means opening the refrigerant side of the system. Federal law covers that part no matter what state you're in. The technician who touches the refrigerant lines has to hold EPA Section 608 certification. On this job, two things are in place before anyone starts. The state license qualifies the contractor. The federal certification qualifies whoever handles the refrigerant itself.
Source: Georgia Secretary of State
- Why is my heat pump blowing cold air?
- In defrost mode, your heat pump blows cold air on purpose while it melts frost off the outdoor coil, and that only lasts a few minutes at a time. If cold air keeps coming for longer than that, the system may have lost refrigerant charge or the reversing valve may be stuck in the wrong position. Check your thermostat is set to heat, not fan only, since the fan setting will circulate air without running the heat pump at all. A stuck reversing valve or low charge is not something to chase down yourself. It needs a contractor with gauges and the license to handle refrigerant.
- Why is there ice on my heat pump?
- A thin layer of frost on the outdoor unit during winter is normal, and the system clears it on its own through a defrost cycle. Thick ice that builds up and stays, especially covering the coil or the fan, points to a problem. Low refrigerant charge, a failing defrost control board, or a fan motor that has slowed down or stopped can all keep the unit from defrosting properly. With winter lows here averaging 33°F, your heat pump runs its defrost cycle often through the cold months, so a fan or sensor that is failing shows up fast. Do not chip at the ice yourself. Have a contractor check the defrost board, the sensor, and the fan motor.
- Why is my heat pump running but not cooling?
- If the outdoor unit and indoor fan are both running but the air coming out is not cold, the system is likely low on refrigerant or the compressor has failed. A dirty air filter or a blocked outdoor coil can also cut off enough airflow that the unit runs without cooling the house. Start by checking the filter, since a clogged one is the easiest thing to rule out. With summer afternoons here reaching 87°F, a heat pump that runs without cooling will fall further behind fast, so it is worth having a contractor check refrigerant charge and the compressor soon rather than waiting.