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A heat pump in trouble here is most likely in trouble because of age, a worn part, or how the original install was done. 43 severe weather events were recorded in Franklin County, Georgia between 2015 and 2024. At that rate, severe weather is an occasional event in this county rather than a standing condition, so a contractor diagnosing a repair does not need to account for years of storm load before looking at the refrigerant circuit, the capacitor, or the compressor itself. Those components fail on their own schedule, and that schedule is what drives repair decisions here.
A heat pump running in a house this old is almost certainly not original to it. Half the homes in Franklin County, Georgia were built in 1989 or earlier (2020-2024 ACS 5-year). That gap between when the walls went up and what runs inside them now is where repair work gets complicated: a contractor who opens the unit may find a system installed well after the house was built, and the question becomes whether the parts that system takes are still in production. Refrigerant lines, control boards, and reversing valves vary by manufacturer and model year, and a contractor quotes only after confirming availability.
The Parts of a Heat Pump a Contractor Checks First
The outdoor unit sits outside the house and holds the compressor and the condenser coil. These are the pieces a contractor reaches first when a heat pump stops heating or cooling correctly. A failed compressor, a dirty or damaged coil, or a refrigerant leak here will take the whole system down.
Inside the house, the air handler pushes conditioned air through the home and contains the evaporator coil and the blower motor. The reversing valve, which lives in the outdoor unit, is the part that lets the system switch between heating and cooling, and it is a common fault point when the system runs but delivers the wrong temperature. The expansion device sits between the two coils and controls refrigerant flow; a blockage there shows up as poor performance in either mode.
The drawing shows a general layout of a heat pump system, and a licensed contractor determines which components apply to your specific home and situation.
Get matched in Franklin CountyFranklin County, Georgia, by the numbers
43 severe weather events were recorded in Franklin County, Georgia between 2015 and 2024.
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, bulk CSV export, events 2015-01-01 through 2024-12-31.Half the homes in Franklin County, Georgia were built in 1989 or earlier (2020-2024 ACS 5-year).
U.S. Census Bureau, 2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesFranklin County, Georgia holds 10,905 housing units (2020-2024 ACS 5-year).
U.S. Census Bureau, 2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesOwners occupy 77.2% of the occupied homes in Franklin County, Georgia (2020-2024 ACS 5-year).
U.S. Census Bureau, 2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesWeather Load History: Franklin County
Extreme weather puts heat pumps under sustained stress, and how hard a unit works over years shapes what repairs it eventually needs. That pattern is local, tied to what the climate here actually does.
43 severe weather events, 2015–2024. Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database.