Heil air conditioners, gas furnaces, heat pumps and ductless units are value-priced equipment built for ordinary homes, and their problems are mostly ordinary too. In San Rafael, Novato and San Anselmo, a Heil system that has stopped working usually has an electrical part that failed outdoors, a furnace control reporting a fault, a filter that choked the airflow, or a thermostat that is reading the room wrong. Each of those is a single, findable repair.
Who builds Heil
Heil is made by International Comfort Products, which belongs to the same parent company as Carrier and Bryant. That means a deep parts supply and designs that most technicians know well. Parts are still matched to the model and serial number on the unit’s data plate. We are independent and not affiliated with Heil or its parent company.
Electrical faults on the outdoor unit
When a Heil AC or heat pump will not run, or hums without the fan turning, the cause is far more often electrical than mechanical. The usual suspects:
- Run capacitor. It helps the compressor and fan motor start and run. A weak one causes humming, slow starts and overheating, and it is one of the most common outdoor repairs.
- Contactor. The switch that powers the outdoor unit when the thermostat calls. Its contacts pit and burn with age, and insects or debris can keep it from closing.
- Condenser fan motor. Bearings wear, and a motor that stops spinning lets the compressor overheat.
- Wiring. Connections loosen, rodents chew insulation, and near the water corrosion builds up on terminals.
We test each part under load and check the compressor’s amp draw. A compressor is condemned only after its start circuit has been ruled out. Refrigerant leaks are the other common outdoor problem, and they are located and repaired before any refrigerant is added.
Furnace flash codes
Most Heil gas furnaces have a status light on the control board, visible through a small window in the lower door. The number of flashes points to a circuit: pressure switch, limit switch, flame sensing or ignition. Count the flashes before you cut the power, because a power cycle often clears the code. The code tells the technician where to start, not which part to buy; a pressure-switch code, for example, can mean a failed switch, a blocked vent or a cracked hose. More on furnace repair.
Filters and airflow
Dirt and debris in the filter are behind many Heil complaints: weak airflow, rooms that never reach the setting, an AC coil that freezes, a furnace that shuts itself off on its high limit. Replacing the filter on schedule is the cheapest repair there is. If a clean filter does not fix it, the blower, the coil and the ducts come next; our poor airflow page explains the checks.
Thermostat calibration
A thermostat that reads two or three degrees off makes a healthy system feel broken: the house is too warm when the display says it is fine, or the system runs longer than it should. Before replacing anything, we compare the reading with a separate thermometer, check the thermostat’s location and wiring, and look at its installer settings. If it is worn out, thermostat installation covers a replacement matched to the equipment. See also thermostat not working.
What you can expect
A real person answers the phone 24/7, and same-day service is usually possible when you call before noon. You get an itemized price after the diagnosis, factory certified parts that carry the manufacturer’s warranty, and a labor warranty on our work.