HVAC Repair in Cookeville, TN
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 Putnam County will get in touch.
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Cookeville runs its system almost year round
Heat runs October through April here. Cooling picks up in May and carries through September. That leaves the system almost no real rest, and the parts that start it up take the wear. Winter nights averaging 30°F mean the furnace cycles on and off for hours at a stretch, and each start puts load on the igniter. Summer afternoons near 85°F push the air conditioner just as hard, and a weak capacitor or a low-charged compressor shows itself first on those hot stretches when the unit runs longest.
Most homes here heat with electricity, so a power outage means no heat at all until it comes back. The region has seen 11 winter storms and 81 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and in 2024 one in five Tennessee households lost power for a full day or more. When the power drops in winter, the cold moves in fast, and when it comes back, the system has to restart cold and pick up where it left off.
- 7 months
- October through April, your system heats
- 5 months
- May through September, it cools
- 30°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 85°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
- Why is my heat not working?
- Start with the thermostat and the power to the unit. If it's set to heat and the temperature is set above the room temperature but nothing is happening, check the breaker and, on a gas furnace, make sure the switch that looks like a light switch near the unit hasn't been bumped off. A furnace that won't fire at all often points to the igniter or the flame sensor, and neither is something to force back to life yourself. With winter nights here averaging 30°F, a furnace that stays down for even a day is worth getting a contractor out for.
- Why is my system running but not cooling the house?
- Check the air filter first. A filter clogged with dust blocks airflow across the coil, and when that happens the coil can ice over and the air coming out feels barely cool or not cool at all. If the filter looks clean, check that the outdoor unit is actually running, since a fan that's stopped or coils packed with grass and debris will also cut cooling well below what the thermostat calls for. If both of those check out and the house still isn't cooling, the system likely needs a contractor to look at the refrigerant charge or the compressor.
- What can I check before calling for HVAC repair?
- Check the thermostat settings, the breaker for the unit, and the air filter. A dead thermostat battery or a tripped breaker can look exactly like a failed system, and a dirty filter can cause problems that look like something bigger. Outside, clear away leaves or debris piled against the outdoor unit so it can breathe. If everything there checks out and the system still isn't heating or cooling, that's the point to call a contractor rather than keep testing things yourself.