Crown Point furnace repair, from the square to the subdivisions
Crown Point is the Lake County seat, and the old courthouse on the square is the first thing most people picture. Around it are some of the older homes in the county, many with basements that have held a coal furnace, then an oil or gas one, then another gas one. Farther out, the newer subdivisions have high-efficiency furnaces that are ten or fifteen years old. We work on both, and we bring the same approach to each: find what broke, price it on paper, let you decide.
Crown Point also sits farther south of the lake than a lot of our towns, with open farmland around the edges. When the wind comes across those fields in January, a house with a weak furnace feels it fast.
Clicking, no flame
A call we take a lot in Crown Point: the thermostat calls for heat, the furnace hums and clicks, and the burners never light. Or they light for a second and go out. After a few tries the furnace locks itself out.
On most modern gas furnaces, a hot surface igniter glows orange to light the gas, and a flame sensor confirms the burners caught. Igniters are fragile and wear out. Flame sensors get coated. Either one can leave you with a furnace that tries and fails all night. Both are common, affordable repairs. Our article on why a furnace won’t light goes into more detail.
Why igniters wear out
A hot surface igniter heats to a bright orange every time the furnace starts. That’s thousands of cycles a winter. Over the years the element gets thin and brittle, and eventually it cracks or just won’t get hot enough. On a cold Crown Point night when the furnace starts over and over, that’s often when it finally goes. We carry common igniters on the truck, and we test the flame sensor at the same time, since the two often wear together.
How a visit works
- You call. A real person answers, any hour, and tells you the diagnostic fee.
- We test the whole sequence. Inducer, pressure switch, igniter, gas valve, flame sensor, blower. Not just the part that looks bad.
- We show you. A cracked igniter or a coated sensor is easy to see once someone points at it.
- Price on paper. Written, agreed, and signed off before we start.
- We fix it and test it. Then we run the furnace through a full cycle before we leave.
Older furnace? Here’s the math.
“15 years old” is not a diagnosis. Plenty of older furnaces in Crown Point are still safe and worth fixing. What matters is the condition of the heat exchanger, the burners, the venting and the safety controls, and what the repair costs compared to what the furnace has left.
Our techs aren’t on commission, so nobody benefits from pushing you into a new system. If a repair truly isn’t worth it, you’ll see the repair price and the replacement price on the same page. If you’d like a head start, read whether it’s worth fixing a 15-year-old furnace.
Carbon monoxide and gas: safety first
If a carbon monoxide alarm goes off, get everyone out and call 911 from outside. If you smell gas, leave the house and call NIPSCO or 911 once you’re out. Don’t flip switches or try to relight anything. Once the house is cleared, we’ll come find the cause.
A CO alarm on each level and near bedrooms is cheap insurance, especially in older houses with older venting.
Before you call
Check the thermostat is on HEAT, the power switch by the furnace is on, and the filter isn’t clogged. If the furnace still clicks without lighting, call us and stop resetting it.
Heat out now? Call (219) 555-0142. Not urgent? Send the form below. We also cover furnace repair in Merrillville and furnace repair in St. John, and you’ll find the full list on our service area page. For how we handle every call, see furnace repair.
