The short answer
EliteAir Heating & Cooling repairs furnaces and air conditioners and installs heat pumps, ductless systems and new equipment across Palo Alto ZIPs 94301, 94303, 94304 and 94306. Working gas equipment does not have to be replaced under Air District rules, but planning a heat pump before a failure gives you more options.
Palo Alto homeowners tend to arrive with two questions at once. The first is immediate: the furnace will not light, or the air conditioner is blowing warm. The second is longer term: should the next system be a heat pump? EliteAir Heating & Cooling, based about 14 miles east in San Jose, answers both for homes in 94301, 94303, 94304 and 94306. We fix what is broken without pushing a replacement, and when you want to plan ahead, we lay out the electrification path in plain terms so you can decide on your own schedule.
Fixing the problem in front of you
A service call starts with the symptom and ends with a clear explanation. For heating, the usual suspects are a failed hot surface igniter, a dirty flame sensor, a blocked condensate trap on a high-efficiency furnace or a tired blower motor. For cooling, we see weak capacitors, refrigerant leaks at old flare fittings, iced evaporator coils and clogged drains. We test, show you the reading or the part, and give you the repair option first.
Palo Alto is closer to the Bay than the inland and southern stretches of the Santa Clara Valley, so it avoids the worst summer heat. Systems here still age, though, and older homes often hide ducts that were patched during past remodels. If a repair is really an airflow problem in disguise, we will tell you.
A decision guide for moving to a heat pump
Electrification is a frequent topic in Palo Alto, and the right answer depends on the house. These are the questions we work through with owners:
- How old is the furnace, and has it needed repeated repairs in the past few seasons?
- Are the existing ducts sized and sealed well enough for a heat pump's airflow needs?
- Does the electrical panel have capacity, or will it need work first?
- Would a ducted system, a ductless setup or a mix of both suit the floor plan best?
- Is there an addition, studio or upstairs space that should be zoned separately?
- Is the water heater also aging, and should both be planned together?
What the rules actually say
There is plenty of confusion about Bay Area Air District rules, so here is the verified version. The rules do not require replacing working equipment; they apply only when an existing furnace or water heater fails or is replaced. Under Rule 9-4, natural gas furnaces manufactured from 2029 must meet a zero-NOx emission standard, which in practice points replacements after that date toward heat pumps.
Water heaters are on a separate track. The zero-NOx date for small water heaters under Rule 9-6 was set for 2027, and the Air District Board is considering amendments in November 2026 that could delay it. Check the current rule before planning a water heater change; we can help you read where it stands.
On money: the federal 25C tax credit covered qualifying heat pumps placed in service before December 31, 2025, and is not available for new installs. BayREN and your local clean energy provider may offer heat pump and electrification incentives. Amounts change by funding cycle, so we confirm the current offer before putting it in a quote.
Ducts, air quality and the rest of the system
A new heat pump only performs as well as the ducts feeding it. We inspect, seal and, where needed, replace sections of ductwork and add returns so rooms heat and cool evenly. Duct cleaning is worthwhile after renovation work. For indoor air quality, we fit proper filter cabinets, recommend higher-efficiency media where the blower can handle it and set up ventilation that brings in fresh air without wasting energy.
Routine maintenance keeps all of it running: one visit before the cooling season, one before the heating season, or a single annual check for a heat pump that does both.
Nearby and easy to schedule
Along with Palo Alto, our crews regularly work in Los Altos Hills, Los Altos, Mountain View, Sunnyvale and Cupertino. Book a visit, describe what the system is doing, and we will arrive within the window we give you with the tools to diagnose it on the spot.
ZIP codes we serve
- 94301
- 94303
- 94304
- 94306