Heating & Furnace Repair in Corpus Christi, TX

How Corpus Christi homes heat

Corpus Christi winters are mild, with January lows typically in the upper 40s under NWS normals (National Weather Service Corpus Christi, Local Climate (1991–2020 normals)), so heating systems here tend to be simple and lightly used. You will usually find one of three setups:

• Electric heat strips (resistance heaters) inside the air handler, paired with a central air conditioner. Common and inexpensive to install, but costly to run for long periods.
• A heat pump, which runs the air conditioner in reverse to move heat into the house, usually with heat strips as backup for the coldest hours. See heat pumps.
• A gas furnace, more common in older homes and larger houses. Inside the city, natural gas comes from Corpus Christi Gas, the city-owned gas utility.

Common heating problems

Burning smell the first time it runs

Dust settles on heat strips and furnace heat exchangers over the long off-season and burns off the first time the heat comes on. A light dusty smell that fades after the first run is normal. A strong electrical or burning-plastic smell, smoke, or a smell that does not fade is not: turn the system off at the thermostat and breaker.

Heat strips not working

Heat strips have elements, sequencers or relays, and safety limits that can fail, and they draw a lot of current. A strip that trips its breaker every time may have a shorted element or a failing breaker. Some systems have several strips; if only part of the heat comes on, the house warms slowly.

Gas furnace will not light

Modern furnaces use a hot surface igniter and a flame sensor. A cracked igniter or a dirty flame sensor are the most common no-heat causes after a long idle season. Older furnaces with standing pilots may have a pilot that will not stay lit. Furnaces in attics and garages also collect dust and, near the coast, rust.

Heat pump blowing cool air

Air from a heat pump feels cooler than air from a furnace, even when it is working. But if the house is not warming, the system may be stuck in cooling mode (a reversing valve problem), low on refrigerant, or in a defrost cycle that is not ending. Backup heat strips should take over in the coldest weather.

Safety: gas and carbon monoxide

• If you smell gas, leave the house and call 911 and the gas utility from outside. Corpus Christi Gas dispatch is (361) 885-6942 (Corpus Christi Gas, Gas Emergencies).
• Any home with a gas furnace, water heater or attached garage should have working carbon monoxide alarms near sleeping areas.
• Never heat the house with a gas oven or an outdoor grill or generator.

Before the first cold front

Turning the heat on for a few minutes on a cool fall day, before it is actually needed, flushes out the burning-dust smell and shows whether anything is wrong while there is time to fix it. A fall tune-up of the heating side is part of the ENERGY STAR maintenance checklist (ENERGY STAR, HVAC Maintenance Checklist). See maintenance and tune-ups.

Sources: National Weather Service Corpus Christi, Local Climate (1991–2020 normals); Corpus Christi Gas, Gas Emergencies; ENERGY STAR, HVAC Maintenance Checklist.