Heat Pump Emergency Repair in Lowcountry

Fast, Reliable Heat Pump Emergency Repair in the Lowcountry

Is your heat pump making a violent grinding noise, blowing lukewarm air when you need it most, or completely dead at the thermostat? These are serious mechanical failures that require immediate professional intervention before a failing compressor or electrical short damages the entire system. All Star Heating & Air is ready to dispatch a technician to diagnose and fix your heat pump right now.

Warning Signs You Need Emergency Heat Pump Repair

Complete Loss of Airflow

When your vents suddenly stop pushing air entirely, you are dealing with a critical system shutdown that demands immediate attention. This complete lack of circulation quickly turns your home into a stagnant, uncomfortable environment. A dead blower often points to a seized indoor motor, a blown capacitor, or a tripped high-pressure safety switch that has locked the system out.

Screeching or Grinding Noises

A heat pump should never sound like metal tearing against metal while it runs. These violent, jarring noises usually mean the motor bearings in your indoor blower or outdoor fan are failing and actively tearing themselves apart. Continuing to run the system with these mechanical screams will inevitably cause the motor to overheat, burn out, and potentially damage surrounding components.

Heavy Ice Buildup on Coils

While a light frost during a standard defrost cycle is normal, a thick block of ice encasing your outdoor unit or indoor coils is a massive red flag. This severe freezing indicates a catastrophic refrigerant leak or a complete lack of airflow that prevents the system from absorbing or releasing heat. If left running, this solid ice block will rapidly destroy your compressor by causing liquid refrigerant to flood back into the pump.

Electrical Burning Smells

An acrid, burning plastic odor coming from your vents means an electrical component is actively melting or short-circuiting inside your air handler. This is an immediate fire hazard that goes far beyond a simple nuisance breakdown. You must shut the system off at the breaker right away to prevent an electrical fire and call for emergency diagnostic services.

Short Cycling Every Few Minutes

If your heat pump kicks on, runs for sixty seconds, and forcefully shuts down, it is desperately trying to protect itself from a catastrophic failure. This erratic behavior, known as short cycling, forces the compressor to draw massive amounts of starting amperage repeatedly. It often stems from a failing control board, severe refrigerant loss, or a dying compressor that is overheating within seconds of startup.

Common Causes of Heat Pump Emergencies

Catastrophic Compressor Failure

The compressor is the heavy-duty engine of your heat pump, and when it locks up or shorts to ground, the entire system becomes an expensive paperweight. This ultimate failure is usually the result of operating with chronically low refrigerant for too long or suffering from severe electrical voltage spikes. When a compressor dies, the repair involves recovering the remaining charge, cutting out the heavy steel pump, and welding a new one into the sealed system.

Severe Refrigerant Leaks

Refrigerant lines operate under intense, constant pressure and can develop sudden ruptures, especially when exposed to the corrosive, salty air of our coastal environment. Once the system loses its critical charge, it physically cannot transfer heat, leading to rapid freezing and system lockouts. Fixing this emergency requires locating the microscopic rupture with electronic leak detectors, brazing the copper shut, and pulling a deep vacuum before recharging the system.

Burned Out Capacitors and Contactors

Heat pumps rely on heavy-duty electrical components to kickstart the heavy motors and handle high-voltage electrical loads. When a capacitor bulges and blows its top, or a contactor welds itself shut from electrical arcing, the motors either refuse to spin or run continuously until they burn out. These sudden electrical failures are incredibly common during periods of heavy system usage and will instantly drop your system offline.

Blocked Condensate Drains

Heat pumps extract gallons of water from the humid indoor air every single day, and if the drain line clogs with algae or sludge, that water backs up violently. The system's safety float switch will trip to prevent a flooded ceiling or ruined hardwood floor, instantly killing power to the indoor unit. Clearing this emergency requires using specialized high-suction vacuums or pressurized nitrogen to blow the heavy biological blockage out of the plumbing.

What to Expect During Your Emergency Service Visit

When we arrive at your home, we skip the guesswork and head straight for the heavy diagnostic tools to isolate the exact point of failure. We test the high and low voltage electrical circuits with precision multimeters, check the refrigerant pressures with digital gauges, and inspect the mechanical integrity of the compressor and motors. This systematic, evidence-based approach ensures we find the actual root cause of the breakdown, rather than just treating the most obvious symptom.

Once we pinpoint the failed component, we walk you through exactly what went wrong and what it takes to get the system back online safely. We carry a wide inventory of universal parts, dual-run capacitors, heavy-duty contactors, and rescue fan motors on our trucks to resolve most heat pump emergencies on the spot. If the damage requires a specialized OEM control board or a major compressor replacement, we secure the unit to prevent further damage and lay out your options clearly with upfront pricing.

You will never be left in the dark about the status of your equipment or the cost of the repair. All Star Heating & Air focuses on getting your system stabilized and producing conditioned air as quickly as possible without cutting corners. We verify proper airflow, confirm correct electrical amp draws, and test the refrigerant subcooling before we consider the emergency resolved.

Heat Pump Emergency Repair Coverage Across Lowcountry

Our emergency response trucks are fully stocked and stationed throughout the region to ensure fast, reliable service when your system suffers a catastrophic failure. We dispatch highly trained technicians directly to your neighborhood to restore your home comfort.

Central Charleston Area: Charleston, SC, Mount Pleasant, SC, James Island, SC, Johns Island, SC

North Area Inland: North Charleston, SC, Goose Creek, SC, Hanahan, SC, Ladson, SC

Western & Outer Lowcountry: Summerville, SC, Moncks Corner, SC, Cottageville, SC

Related Services

If your system is not in total failure but is struggling to keep up with the thermostat, we also provide standard Heat Pump Repair & Service to address minor performance issues before they escalate into an emergency. To prevent these sudden, stressful breakdowns from happening in the first place, ask our technicians about our comprehensive Heat Pump Maintenance & Tune-Up plans.

Restore Your Home Comfort Today

A broken heat pump is a miserable experience that exposes your home to harsh outdoor temperatures and extreme indoor humidity. You need a team with over thirty years of experience handling coastal climate HVAC emergencies to get your mechanical systems running smoothly again. We have the training, the parts, and the diagnostic expertise to solve the most complex heat pump failures.

Do not wait for a minor electrical issue to completely destroy your compressor or for a frozen evaporator coil to flood your floors. Reach out right away through our website to request an emergency repair visit and let our expert technicians restore your home comfort.