Heat Pump Repair in Portsmouth, VA
Homes here need heat from November through April and cooling from May through September. If your system quits, tell us what it's doing and a licensed contractor who covers Portsmouth will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Portsmouth runs its heat pump almost year round
Your heat pump works eleven months a year here, heat from November through April and cooling from May through September. That is almost no rest between seasons, and it means the compressor and the reversing valve are cycling on some part of nearly every day of the year.
Winter nights averaging 35°F keep the system in defrost more often, cycling the reversing valve back and forth to clear the outdoor coil. Summer afternoons near 86°F push the compressor hard on the cooling side. Wind and winter storms are part of the picture too, and with 22% of Virginia households losing power for a day or more last year, a heat pump that will not come back on when the power returns is a real possibility, not a rare one.
- 6 months
- November through April, your system heats
- 5 months
- May through September, it cools
- 35°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 86°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
Virginia requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The license is issued to the contractor, not to this one job, and it covers the person doing the work rather than any single repair. It comes from the Board for Contractors, which tests and keeps records on who holds it. Virginia does carve out an exception for small jobs. Work under $1,000 does not need a licensed contractor at all.
A heat pump repair usually means opening the refrigerant side of the system, and that requires the technician to hold EPA Section 608 certification. That rule comes from the federal government, not the state, so it applies here the same as anywhere else. If this repair runs over $1,000, the state license is what stands behind the work. If it falls under that line, the EPA certification is still required even though the state license is not.
Sources: Virginia General Assembly · Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation
- Why is my heat pump blowing cold air?
- In winter, this usually means it's stuck in defrost mode or the reversing valve is not switching back to heat. The reversing valve tells the system whether to heat or cool, and if it sticks, the unit keeps running like it's in the wrong season. Low refrigerant can cause the same thing. A contractor can check the valve and the refrigerant charge, but opening that side of the system legally requires EPA 608 certification.
- Why is there ice on my heat pump?
- Some frost during a winter defrost cycle is normal, and the unit should clear it on its own before long. If ice is building up and staying, especially thick ice or ice covering the whole coil, something is keeping the defrost cycle from working, like a bad defrost sensor, a stuck reversing valve, or low refrigerant. A unit that stays iced over will lose heating capacity and can damage the compressor if it runs that way for long.
- Why is my heat pump running but not cooling?
- The most common cause in summer is low refrigerant from a leak somewhere in the lines or coil. Airflow problems, like a clogged filter or a blocked outdoor unit, can also stop the system from pulling heat out of the house even though it keeps running. With afternoons here reaching 86°F, a unit that runs without cooling needs attention quickly, since it can freeze the coil or strain the compressor. A contractor with EPA 608 certification can check the refrigerant charge and find the leak.