Furnace Repair in Rochester, NY
Furnaces here run from October through May. If yours quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Monroe County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Rochester furnaces run long hours in the cold for eight months straight
From October through May your furnace is the thing standing between your house and a Rochester winter. Nights average 20°F from December through February, so the burner is lighting and shutting off all day long for months at a time. Each cycle puts wear on the igniter and the parts that start the burner, and that wear catches up with older units first.
Monroe County has seen 18 winter storms and 154 damaging wind events over the past ten years. Wind and ice bring down power lines, and across New York, 11% of households lost power for 24 hours or more in 2024. When the power drops, most furnaces stop running even if the gas is still on, and a house built to hold heat starts losing it fast.
- 8 months
- October through May, your furnace is on duty
- 20°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 75%
- of homes here heat with gas, so most furnaces here burn gas
- 18 winter storms
- in ten years, the nights a failure hurts most
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
A new furnace would cut about $170 a year off heating for a typical Monroe County home.
Estimates for a typical Monroe County home, compared with an older unit built to the previous federal minimum, from EIA household energy data, New York fuel prices and NOAA climate normals. Your home will differ.
Repair makes sense when one part has failed and the heat exchanger is sound.
Replacement makes sense when the heat exchanger is cracked or the furnace keeps needing parts.
- Why won't my furnace turn on?
- Start with the thermostat. Check that it's set to heat and the temperature is above room temperature, and check the batteries if it uses them. If the thermostat looks right, check the breaker for the furnace and the switch on the furnace itself, which looks like a light switch and is sometimes mistaken for a wall switch and left off. Gas furnaces also need the pilot lit or, on newer units, power to the igniter. If none of that explains it, a contractor can look at the ignition system and the safety switches that shut a furnace down when something isn't right.
- Why is my furnace blowing cold air?
- Most often the blower is running before the burners have caught up, which is normal for a short stretch after the furnace starts. If cold air keeps coming, check the filter. A filter clogged with dust blocks airflow and can make the air coming out feel cooler than it should. If the filter is clean and the air stays cold, the burners may not be lighting at all, or the flame sensor may be shutting them off right after ignition. That's a job for a contractor, since it usually means something in the gas or ignition system needs attention.
- Why won't my furnace pilot light stay lit?
- The thermocouple is usually the cause. It's the small metal rod that sits in the pilot flame and tells the gas valve the pilot is lit. When it wears out or sits slightly out of position, the flame goes out soon after you release the gas control knob. A draft blowing across the pilot can cause the same thing, so check that the area around the furnace isn't getting airflow from a vent or open door nearby. If relighting it keeps failing, the thermocouple likely needs to be replaced or adjusted, which a contractor can do.