Furnace Repair in Kingston, NY
Furnaces here run from October through May. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Ulster County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Eight months of heat, and nights near 18 degrees
Your furnace works from October through May here, and on the coldest nights it's fighting an average low of 18°F. That means long stretches where the burner is cycling on and off for hours at a time, night after night. Each cycle puts wear on the igniter and the parts that get the burner lit.
A lot of homes in the county heat with fuel oil, and oil furnaces depend on a clean nozzle and a strong spark to fire properly. When the nozzle clogs or the igniter weakens, the furnace struggles to start, or it starts and then shuts back down. Ulster County also sees its share of winter storms and high wind, and when the power drops, so does your furnace, oil or gas. Most come back on their own once power is restored, but if a storm knocked something loose or wet before that, it may not.
- 8 months
- October through May, your furnace is on duty
- 18°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 33 winter storms
- in ten years, the nights a failure hurts most
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
- Why won't my furnace turn on?
- Most often the thermostat isn't calling for heat, a safety switch has tripped, or the pilot or igniter has failed. Check that the thermostat is set to heat and the temperature is above room level. Check the breaker and the furnace's own power switch, which looks like a light switch near the unit. If those are fine, the igniter or flame sensor may have failed, or a safety switch has cut power because of a clogged filter or blocked vent. With winter lows here averaging 18°F, it's worth having a contractor look at it the same day rather than waiting.
- Why is my furnace blowing cold air?
- If air is blowing but not warming up, the burners likely aren't lighting even though the blower is running. A dirty flame sensor or a failed igniter will stop the burners while the fan keeps moving air through the ducts. It can also happen during startup, when the blower runs for a short time before the air warms. If the air stays cold for more than a few minutes, the burners aren't lighting and a contractor will need to find out why.
- Why won't my furnace pilot light stay lit?
- A pilot that won't stay lit usually means the thermocouple has worn out or the pilot flame is too weak to hold it open. Dust or lint clogging the pilot tube will also smother the flame. Drafts near the furnace can blow it out too, so check for anything nearby causing airflow. A standing pilot doesn't use power at all, so this isn't related to outages. Since 42.9% of homes here heat with fuel oil, some furnaces use an oil burner ignition system instead of a gas pilot, and a contractor can tell you which kind you have and what's failing.