Modesto & Stanislaus County
Furnace and Air Conditioning Help for Modesto Homes
A furnace that quits in the December fog or an AC that quits at 105°F. One call, one local heating and air company, and straight answers about what it should cost.
Modesto asks a lot of one system. The same furnace and condenser cover foggy nights in the high 30s and July afternoons past 100, in houses that were mostly built in the 1970s and 1980s with ducts running through hot attics. Most repairs here come back to one of those three things.
Answered Mon–Sat, 8am–6pm · after hours we call back the same day
Free to call · No obligation · Local Modesto heating and air companies
What furnace repair costs in Modesto
Most furnace repairs local companies quote land between about $150 and $600 once the diagnostic visit is done. Motors and control boards run higher, often $500 to $1,500. A cracked heat exchanger usually ends the furnace rather than the repair.
Heating comes first here
People assume Modesto is an air conditioning town. The search numbers say otherwise for the expensive calls. "Furnace repair modesto" was searched 720 times in November 2025 and 590 the month before, against 90 in August. Those are the nights a furnace that has sat idle since March gets asked to run for twelve hours straight, and the weak part shows itself.
Air conditioning is the bigger volume: "ac repair modesto" ran at 1,900 a month in May and June 2026 and 1,600 in a hot October 2025. So this site leads with the furnace and treats the AC as the second half of the same system. In most Modesto houses they share a blower, a filter and a set of ducts, and a fault in one often turns up in the other.
What Modesto houses have in common
Most of the city's homes went up in the 1970s and 1980s. That means a gas furnace in the garage, a hall closet or the attic, an outdoor condenser on a slab in the side yard, and flexible ducts in an attic that passes 130 degrees on a July afternoon. Ducts in that attic lose cooling before it reaches the rooms, and in winter the same leaks pull dusty attic air back in.
Older than that
The College Area, Graceada Park and La Loma predate central air altogether. Ducts there were added later, and the work was not always sized for the house. Uneven rooms in those neighbourhoods are often a duct question rather than an equipment one.
Newer than that
Village One, Sylvan and Salida are mostly late-1980s to 2000s. Many of those first systems are now 20 to 30 years old, and an outdoor unit from before about 2010 likely runs on R-22, which is no longer manufactured. A leak on one of those is usually the start of a replacement conversation.
Before anyone comes out
A good share of no-heat and no-cooling calls end at the thermostat or the filter. Check that the thermostat is set to heat or cool and its batteries are alive, that the furnace switch (it looks like a light switch, on or near the unit) is on, that no breaker has tripped, and that the filter is not grey and bowed. A clogged filter trips the furnace's high-limit switch and freezes an AC coil, and both look like a dead system.
If none of that brings it back, stop there. Resetting a furnace over and over or opening panels is how a $200 repair grows. The no-heat guide walks through the first ten minutes in order, including what a gas smell or a carbon monoxide alarm changes.
If the house is getting cold or hot now, call. Say what the system is doing and how old it is, and a local heating and air company takes it from there.
Permits and rebates are local
Replacing a furnace or an air conditioner in California needs a permit from the city or county, and the energy code adds duct and airflow checks to most change-outs. Modesto Irrigation District's 2026 rebate catalog asks for a copy of that permit before it pays out on a new AC or heat pump. Skipping the permit to save a few hundred dollars can cost you the rebate, which is often worth more. The permit guide explains what the city is likely to ask for.
Heating and cooling help
- Furnace Repair in Modesto, CA
- AC Repair in Modesto, CA
- Heat Pump and HVAC Repair in Modesto
- Furnace and AC Replacement in Modesto
- Furnace and AC Tune-Ups in Modesto
- Air Filtration for Modesto Homes
Where we work in Modesto
- College AreaWest of downtownearly-1900s homes around the MJC East Campus, built long before central air; the ducts were added later, usually through tight attics or crawlspaces
- Graceada ParkCentralCraftsman-era homes around the park; air conditioning arrived decades after the houses did, so check whether the ducts and the furnace were ever sized for it
- La LomaEast, along Dry Creekolder homes under big trees along Dry Creek; the shade helps in July, and the leaves end up packed into outdoor coils by fall
- Village OneEast, toward Oakdale Roada planned area whose subdivisions went in from the late 1990s, so many original furnaces and condensers are now at replacement age
- Del RioNorth, toward the Stanislaus Riverlarger homes around the country club, many with two systems or a zoned one, which makes a single failure harder to pin down
- SylvanNortheastmostly 1980s to early-2000s tract homes; an original outdoor unit from that era runs on R-22, which is no longer made, so a leak usually ends in replacement
ZIP codes served95350 · 95351 · 95354 · 95355 · 95356 · 95357 · 95358
Beyond Modesto
We also cover Salida, Riverbank, Ceres and Turlock.
Guides
- What Furnace Repair Costs in Modesto (2026)
- No Heat on a Cold Modesto Night: The First Ten Minutes
- Do You Need a Permit to Replace a Furnace or AC in Modesto?
- MID Rebates for a New AC or Heat Pump: What Qualifies in 2026
- Furnace Filters for Valley Air: Fog Season, Smoke Season and MERV 13
- When the AC Quits at 105°F: What to Do Before Anyone Arrives
- Repair or Replace? Deciding on a 20-Year-Old Furnace in Modesto
Common questions
What does it cost to call you?
Nothing. There is no fee for the introduction and no obligation. You pay the heating and air company that does the work, directly, at whatever you agree with them after they have seen the system.
What does a furnace repair usually cost in Modesto?
Expect a diagnostic or service-call charge first, then the repair. Igniters, flame sensors, pressure switches and capacitors are the common, cheaper fixes. Inducer motors, blower motors and control boards cost more. The cost guide lists each part with the range local companies generally quote.
I smell gas. What do I do?
Leave the house first, without switching lights or appliances on or off, and call PG&E or 911 from outside. A gas smell is a utility emergency before it is a furnace repair. Once the gas side is cleared, the furnace can be looked at.
How fast can someone come out?
That is set by the company you are put through to, and it depends on the day. The first cold week of November and any run of 105-degree days fill everyone's calendar at once. Calling early in the day helps more than anything else.
Do you cover my part of town?
All of Modesto, from the College Area and La Loma to Village One, Sylvan and Del Rio, plus Salida, Riverbank, Ceres and Turlock. If you are near the edge of that, call and give the ZIP.
Will MID pay part of a new air conditioner?
Often, if you are an MID electric customer. Its 2026 catalog lists rebates for central air conditioners and heat pumps that meet set efficiency tiers, and it asks for the city or county permit and a C-20 contractor's paid invoice. The MID rebate guide has the details.
Are you a heating and air contractor?
No. We are an advertising and referral service operated by Pinecrest Advisory Services, LLC. When you call or send a request, we pass it to an independent local heating and air company that serves your area. We do not do the work, hold no contractor licence, and take no cut of what you pay.
Get help with your heating or AC
Say what the system is doing and a local heating and air company will get back to you about a visit. Answered Mon–Sat, 8am–6pm · after hours we call back the same day Or call (209) 842-0950. If you have no heat or no cooling right now, calling is faster.