West Orlando is a cooling market. The Florida Climate Center’s 1991–2020 normals for Orlando show about 3,452 cooling degree days a year against only about 525 heating degree days, and almost all of the heating ones land in December, January, and February. January’s normal low is 49.5°F. That means a typical Winter Garden or Horizon West system spends eight or nine months moving heat out of the house and only a few weeks moving it back in.
That imbalance is exactly why the first real cold front of the season catches people out. Parts that sat idle since March, the reversing valve, the heat strips, the defrost controls, a thermostat set to “cool” since spring, suddenly get asked to work on a 45°F morning. Problems that hid all summer show up in one night.
Orlando West HVAC is a matching service. We connect a homeowner or authorized occupant with a local Florida-licensed HVAC contractor. We do not diagnose systems, repair heat pumps, or claim to be the contractor of record. The matched tech confirms scope, price, and schedule after it reviews what you send. If the house will not hold temperature, the AC repair match path covers heating complaints on heat pump systems too.
How a Florida heat pump makes heat
Most newer homes in Winter Garden, Ocoee, Clermont, and Kissimmee have a heat pump rather than a gas furnace. The outdoor unit you think of as “the AC” runs in reverse in winter: it pulls heat out of the outdoor air and moves it inside. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Saver guide describes heat pumps as the most efficient form of electric heating, able to deliver up to three times more heat than the energy they use, and says they can cut heating electricity by roughly half compared with electric furnaces or baseboard heaters.
Many Central Florida systems also have electric resistance heat strips in the indoor air handler. Those strips are the backup. They help during a defrost cycle, on the rare very cold morning, or when the thermostat asks for a big temperature jump all at once. DOE’s Federal Energy Management Program guidance on residential heat pumps notes that resistance elements are often added to cover heating capacity, and that because they are inefficient, their use should be kept to a minimum. It recommends thermostats designed for heat pumps that raise the temperature slowly so the strips don’t kick in unnecessarily.
Some older homes and some additions in Windermere or Stoneybrook West run a gas furnace with a separate AC instead. That changes the safety picture (more on carbon monoxide below), and it is worth saying which you have when you request a match.
What the thermostat is telling you: HEAT, AUX, and EM HEAT
Three labels confuse people every December:
- HEAT means the heat pump compressor is doing the work. This is the efficient mode you want most of the time.
- AUX (auxiliary) means the heat strips are helping. Seeing it briefly during a defrost, or for a short while after you nudge the setpoint up several degrees, is common.
- EM HEAT (emergency heat) is a setting you choose by hand. It runs the strips without the compressor. It is meant for when the outdoor unit has failed, not as an everyday setting.
Energy code language backs up the idea that strips should be the exception. DOE’s heat pump permitting and inspection checklist cites the residential energy code (IECC R403.1.2) requirement that systems with supplementary electric resistance heat have controls that, except during defrost, prevent the strips from running when the compressor can meet the load. If your thermostat shows AUX almost every time the heat runs, even on a 55°F night, that’s useful information for a licensed tech. It might be a thermostat setting, wiring, a refrigerant issue, or an outdoor unit that isn’t running at all. We won’t guess which, and the internet shouldn’t either.
The first-run smell: when to wait and when to switch off
The first time the heat strips energize after months idle, many homeowners notice a faint, dusty, slightly burnt smell. Dust settles on the elements over the summer and burns off. That smell is commonly reported, and it usually fades within minutes.
Treat these differently:
- A smell that keeps getting stronger instead of fading.
- Visible smoke from a vent or the air-handler closet.
- A melting-plastic, hot-wire, or electrical smell.
- A breaker that trips when the heat turns on, or trips again after a reset.
In any of those cases, turn the system off at the thermostat. If there is smoke or fire, get everyone out and call 911. That is a fire emergency, not an HVAC match. The U.S. Fire Administration reports that heating was still the second leading cause of US home fires in 2021, with an estimated 32,200 home heating fires, and recommends having heating equipment cleaned and inspected each year by a professional.
When the breaker trips, choose Breaker on the request form. When you are not sure what you smelled, choose Not sure and describe it in plain words.
A steaming outdoor unit is not always a broken one
In heating mode, the outdoor coil gets colder than the outdoor air. On a damp Central Florida morning it can frost over. The heat pump then runs a defrost cycle: it briefly flips to cooling mode to warm the outdoor coil. During that cycle the outdoor fan may stop, the unit may make a whoosh or click as the reversing valve shifts, and you may see what looks like steam rising off the coil. The strips often come on during defrost to keep indoor air from blowing cold. That’s why AUX appears for a few minutes at a time.
What is worth a licensed tech’s visit:
- The outdoor coil stays encased in ice and never clears.
- The unit seems to defrost constantly, every few minutes.
- The outdoor unit is silent while the indoor fan blows cool air on HEAT.
- The house won’t climb past a few degrees above the outdoor temperature.
Do not chip ice off the coil, pour hot water on it, or open panels. Coil fins bend easily and electrical parts sit behind those panels.
Gas furnaces, space heaters, and carbon monoxide
A heat pump with electric strips doesn’t burn fuel, so it doesn’t make carbon monoxide. A gas furnace, gas water heater, or fuel-burning space heater can. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recommends battery-operated or battery-backup CO alarms on every level of the home and outside sleeping areas, and says that if you suspect CO poisoning (headache, dizziness, nausea, confusion), you should get to fresh air immediately and then call 911.
The first cold snap is also when space heaters come out of closets in Ocoee and Kissimmee. USFA says portable heaters were only about 3% of home heating fires in 2017–2019 but accounted for 41% of fatal heating fires, and it recommends keeping anything that can burn at least 3 feet away and turning heaters off when you leave the room or go to bed. A space heater is a stopgap while you wait for a licensed tech, not a substitute for one.
A quick pre-season check before the cold front arrives
You don’t need tools for this, and none of it is a repair:
- Switch the thermostat to HEAT on a mild afternoon in late October or November. Raise the setpoint a couple of degrees, not ten. Confirm the outdoor unit starts and warm air arrives within a few minutes.
- Check the filter. ENERGY STAR’s maintenance checklist lists changing the air filter regularly among the basics, because a dirty filter restricts airflow and makes the system work harder.
- Clear around the outdoor unit. Leaves, mulch, and landscaping that crept in over the summer block airflow in both seasons.
- Test smoke and CO alarms if any appliance in the home burns gas.
- Note what you saw. If something was off, write down what the thermostat said, whether the outdoor unit ran, and how long the smell lasted.
If the system passed but you want a licensed tech to look at the heat strips, reversing valve, and defrost controls along with the usual cooling items, a planned visit is the better route. Our AC maintenance and tune-up guide covers what to ask. If you’re weighing whether a no-heat morning is urgent at all, when an AC failure is an emergency uses the same logic for heat: health risk, vulnerable occupants, and water or electrical hazards come first.
Licensing and refrigerant: who should touch what
Heat pump repair in Florida is licensed work. Air-conditioning contractors are licensed by the Florida DBPR, and you can look up a license on MyFloridaLicense.com. Any work that opens the refrigerant circuit also requires EPA Section 608 technician certification. A low refrigerant charge in a heat pump affects heating as well as cooling, and topping it up without finding a leak isn’t a fix. Ask the matched tech what it found and what it recommends, in writing.
We will not invent a license number, a shop address, or reviews. The tech you are matched with should give you its own license number, and you can check it before anyone opens a panel.
How to request a match for a heating problem
- Name your city or ZIP. We match across Winter Garden, Horizon West, Windermere, Ocoee, Oakland, Stoneybrook West, Clermont, Minneola, and Kissimmee. Local detail, such as an HOA’s service-hour rules in Winter Garden, helps the tech plan the visit.
- Choose an intent. Pick Breaker for tripping breakers, No cooling if the system won’t run in either mode, Tune-up for a planned pre-winter visit, and Not sure for heat that runs but doesn’t warm the house.
- Choose property type so the tech knows who will provide access.
- Describe what you saw: heat pump or gas furnace, what the thermostat showed (HEAT, AUX, EM HEAT), whether the outdoor unit ran, ice or steam, any smell and how long it lasted, and the age of the system if you know it.
- Answer the may-we-text question so the match conversation can move quickly.
Then request a local licensed HVAC tech. We match. The technician confirms whether it can take the job, what it will charge, and when it can arrive.
Sources
- Florida Climate Center — Orlando 1991–2020 normals (temperature normals, heating and cooling degree days)
- U.S. DOE — Energy Saver guide (2022) (heat pump efficiency)
- U.S. DOE FEMP — Purchasing energy-efficient residential air-source heat pumps (resistance heat and heat-pump thermostats)
- U.S. DOE — Heat pump space heating permitting and inspection checklist (IECC R403.1.2 supplementary heat controls)
- U.S. Fire Administration — Heating fire safety
- U.S. CPSC — Carbon Monoxide Information Center
- ENERGY STAR — Heating and cooling maintenance checklist
- U.S. EPA — Section 608 technician certification requirements
- Florida DBPR — License search
Frequently asked questions
Why does my heat pump say AUX or EM HEAT on the thermostat?
AUX usually means backup electric resistance heat (heat strips) is helping the heat pump, for example during a defrost cycle or a quick temperature jump. EM HEAT is a manual setting that runs the strips without the compressor. U.S. DOE guidance says strip heat should be kept to a minimum because it is much less efficient. If AUX shows almost every time the heat runs on a mild night, describe that to a licensed tech.
Is a burning smell normal the first time I turn the heat on?
A faint, dusty smell that fades within minutes is commonly reported the first time heat strips run after months idle. A smell that keeps getting stronger, visible smoke, a melting-plastic or electrical smell, or a tripped breaker is not something to wait out. Turn the system off at the thermostat and, if there is smoke or fire, leave the house and call 911.
My outdoor unit is steaming and the fan stopped. Is it broken?
In heating mode a heat pump can frost up and run a defrost cycle, during which the outdoor fan may pause and the coil may release steam-like vapor. Short, occasional defrosts are part of normal operation. A unit encased in ice that never clears, or one that defrosts constantly, is worth a licensed tech's visit.
Can Orlando West HVAC fix my heat?
No. Orlando West HVAC is a matching service. We pass your request to a local Florida-licensed HVAC contractor, who confirms scope, price, and schedule. Verify the contractor's license on MyFloridaLicense.com before work starts.