Heat Pump Repair in Highland, CA
- Same-day appointments most days, 24/7 phone coverage
- Both heating and cooling modes tested every visit
- Written price before any repair starts
- Common parts stocked on the truck
A Heat Pump Is Two Systems in One, so We Test Both
Readings in Both Modes
Plenty of techs check cooling, call it good, and leave. We run heating and cooling and take superheat, subcooling, and temperature split on each, because a reversing valve fault only shows up in one of them.
Defrost Gets Tested Properly
Defrost boards, sensors, and reversing valves cause most of the odd winter complaints. We force a defrost cycle and watch it complete instead of guessing from a symptom description.
Fast Answers, Honest Ones
You get the diagnosis, the price, and a clear repair-or-replace opinion the same visit. If the compressor is done on a fourteen year old unit, we will say that instead of selling you a bandage.
Leaks Found, Not Just Refilled
Low charge means a leak somewhere. We locate it and quote the repair. Adding refrigerant every spring is an expensive way to avoid a real fix.
What People Say After the Truck Leaves
"Our heat pump was blowing cool air in heating mode. Two other companies wanted to replace the whole unit. These guys found a stuck reversing valve solenoid and fixed it the same afternoon."
"Showed up when they said, tested everything, and showed me the gauge readings. Turned out to be a defrost sensor. Fair price and no runaround."
"Called on a Sunday and a real person answered. Tech was out that day. He explained what failed and why in a way that actually made sense."
Heat Pump Not Heating or Not Cooling?
Same-day diagnostics on most days with a flat $75 residential diagnostic and a written price before any work begins.
How We Diagnose a Heat Pump That Is Not Performing
Heat pump complaints sound different from furnace complaints. Instead of no heat at all, people usually describe air that feels lukewarm, a unit that runs constantly without catching up, or an outdoor unit that ices over and stays that way. Those symptoms all have several possible causes, and the only way to separate them is to put gauges and a meter on the system in both operating modes.
Here is what a diagnostic visit covers:
- Refrigerant pressures with superheat and subcooling calculated in both heating and cooling, then compared to the manufacturer target.
- Reversing valve operation, including solenoid coil resistance and an actual mode switch while we watch the line temperatures respond.
- Defrost board, defrost sensor, and outdoor thermistor tested, since a bad sensor will either skip defrost or run it constantly.
- Auxiliary heat strips and their sequencers checked, because strips stuck on will spike an electric bill without anyone noticing for months.
- Capacitors, contactor, compressor amp draw, and fan motor readings recorded against rated values.
- Airflow verified at the indoor unit, including filter, coil condition, and static pressure across the blower.
- Thermostat wiring and configuration confirmed, since a heat pump wired like a standard AC will behave strangely all winter.
The failures we see most around here
Outdoor coils take a beating on this side of the valley. Homes closer to the base of the San Bernardino Mountains pull in fine grit that packs into the outdoor coil fins, and a clogged coil raises head pressure until the system either trips out or limps along using far more electricity than it should. A lot of what gets called a failing compressor is really a coil that has never been washed.
Reversing valves are the other recurring one. Because our winters are short, that valve may only switch a handful of times a year, and parts that sit still tend to stick. When somebody in East Highlands Ranch calls in November saying the system blows cold in heat mode, a stuck valve is the first thing we check, and it is often a solenoid rather than the valve body itself.
What a service call looks like
- 1
You Talk, We Listen
When it started, whether it is one mode or both, what the thermostat is set to, and whether anything changed recently.
- 2
Full System Test
Gauges on the unit, meter on the electricals, and a run in both heating and cooling before we form an opinion.
- 3
Diagnosis Explained
We show you the reading that proves the fault. No vague talk about the system being tired.
- 4
Written Price, Your Call
Flat pricing for the repair, plus an honest read on whether the age of the unit makes replacement the smarter money.
- 5
Repair and Verify
We fix it, run the system again, and confirm the readings landed where they should before we pack up.
When repair stops making sense
A heat pump runs year round, so it accumulates hours faster than a furnace does. Past twelve or thirteen years, a compressor or coil failure is usually the point where replacement money is better spent than repair money. Smaller parts like capacitors, contactors, sensors, and boards are worth fixing at almost any age because they are inexpensive and they restore the system fully.
We will tell you which category you are in on the first visit. Highland Heating & Air would rather keep a working system running than sell you equipment you did not need, and the readings we leave behind will back up whichever answer you get.
More Ways We Keep Your Building Comfortable
Heating
Reliable warmth when the temperature drops
Cooling
Keep the heat outside where it belongs
Specialized
Custom comfort and whole-system care
Proudly serving the Inland Empire.
Highland is home base, and we run calls all over San Bernardino County every week. Don't see your city? Give us a call and we'll tell you straight.
Heat Pump Repair Questions, Answered
Heat pump supply air normally runs around 95 degrees, which feels cool against your skin even though it is heating the house. If the room temperature is not climbing at all, then something is wrong, and a stuck reversing valve is the usual culprit.
No, that is a normal defrost cycle finishing. The unit reverses briefly to melt frost off the outdoor coil and the steam is the result. It becomes a problem when the coil stays iced over after the cycle ends.
Seventy five dollars for residential and one twenty five for commercial, quoted before we come out. That covers the full test in both modes and a written diagnosis, and there is no after-hours upcharge on nights or weekends.
Usually the backup heat strips are running when they should not be, either from a stuck sequencer, a miswired thermostat, or a heat pump that is not keeping up so the strips fill the gap. It is a common find and often a cheap fix once somebody measures the amp draw.
Twice a year, because it works in both seasons. Around Highland the outdoor coil picks up grit off the foothills fast, and a spring and fall visit keeps the coil clean and catches reversing valve and defrost issues before the weather changes.
Yes. Carrier, Trane, Lennox, Goodman, Rheem, Bosch, Mitsubishi and the rest all use the same operating principles, and we keep the common capacitors, contactors, sensors, and boards on the truck to finish most repairs the same visit.
Get Your Heat Pump Diagnosed Today
Both modes tested, readings shown, flat price before the work. Call and a person picks up, 24/7, 365 days a year.
Highland, CA and the surrounding Inland Empire