An HVAC inspection is a full-system check with written findings: the furnace, the air conditioner or heat pump, the ductwork, the thermostat, and the safety controls, tested and reported on. In a city where 46.5% of homes were built before 1990 and a large share of furnaces are on their second or third cycle, an inspection is how a buyer, a landlord, or a homeowner finds out what the system actually is — before January does. DNA Refrigeration does HVAC inspections across Fort Collins. Call (970) 932-2324. If you are choosing a company, see what every Fort Collins homeowner should check before hiring an HVAC pro.
An HVAC inspection is an assessment, not a service visit. The technician tests the heating and cooling systems, reads the combustion numbers, inspects the heat exchanger, checks the refrigerant circuit and the ductwork, and writes down what was found — what is fine, what is wearing, and what needs attention. A tune-up cleans and adjusts; an inspection finds out. The two overlap, but they answer different questions.
The inspection is built for three moments. The first is buying a home: Fort Collins’ pre-1990 stock means a buyer is often inheriting a furnace on its second or third cycle, and sometimes no central air conditioning at all — many older homes were built for evaporative coolers or open windows. The second is the landlord turnover: with only 51.6% of homes owner-occupied, rental inspections are a large part of the market, and a documented inspection before a new tenant moves in protects both sides. The third is the pre-season check: a homeowner who wants to know, before October, whether the furnace will hold through 5,797 heating degree days.
Safety is the core of the inspection, not an add-on. The heat exchanger is visually inspected, the flue gas is read with a combustion analyzer, and the gas pressure is checked against the data plate at 5,003 feet of altitude. A cracked heat exchanger is a carbon monoxide risk, and it is the one finding that changes everything: it is not repairable in any practical sense, and it turns an inspection into a replacement conversation. The inspection also looks at the things a buyer cannot see: duct leakage, refrigerant charge, and whether the equipment was sized for the altitude at all.
Fort Collins sits at 5,003 feet, and the City’s mechanical guide puts furnace derating at 10–20% at this elevation — sea-level ratings do not apply here, so systems are sized from a Manual J load calculation at altitude, not from square footage alone.
Six areas, one written report. These are the checks that make up an inspection in Fort Collins.
An inspection before the heating season answers the question that matters: will this furnace hold temperature through 5,797 heating degree days? The igniter, flame sensor, condensate drain, and heat exchanger are all checked before October, not after the first cold snap.
A buyer inheriting a pre-1990 system needs to know its age, its condition, and its remaining life — and whether the house has central cooling at all. The inspection documents the furnace, the cooling system, and the ductwork, so the purchase decision is made with evidence.
With only 51.6% of Fort Collins homes owner-occupied, rental inspections are a large part of the market. A documented inspection at turnover — filter, safety checks, system condition — protects the landlord and the tenant alike.
The heat exchanger is visually inspected, the flue gas is read with a combustion analyzer, and gas pressure is verified. Carbon monoxide readings and exchanger condition are safety findings, and they are shown to you, not just noted.
Duct leakage is measured, refrigerant charge is checked, and temperature rise is compared with the data plate. An inspection finds the waste — ducts dumping heated air into an attic, a system running on a low charge — that a tune-up alone would not explain.
The inspection ends with a plain account: what is fine, what is wearing, and what needs attention — with the repair and replacement numbers side by side where they matter. A cracked heat exchanger ends the repair conversation; a worn igniter does not start one.
Call (970) 932-2324. Tell us whether the inspection is for a purchase, a rental turnover, or a pre-season check — the focus changes with the reason, and the report is written for it.
The technician works through the system: furnace, cooling equipment, ductwork, thermostat, and safety controls. Fault codes are read, combustion numbers are taken, and the heat exchanger is visually inspected.
Gas pressure, temperature rise, refrigerant pressures, and duct leakage are measured against specification. Anything drifting out of range is flagged with the reading, not just a note.
The findings are walked through on site: what is fine, what is wearing, and what needs attention. Safety findings are shown to you, not just described.
You get a written summary of the system’s condition and the next steps — repair, maintenance, or replacement — in plain language, with the numbers that support it.
Call (970) 932-2324. Tell us whether the inspection is for a purchase, a rental turnover, or a pre-season check — the focus changes with the reason, and the report is written for it.
Reads oxygen, carbon monoxide and flue temperature on every gas furnace inspected.
Tests igniters, flame sensors, capacitors, contactors, and control board voltage.
Finds hot spots on the control board, blocked duct runs, and heat exchanger problems a visual inspection can miss.
Verifies gas pressure against the data plate at 5,003 feet, where altitude changes the numbers.
Measures how much conditioned air escapes through duct leaks — a finding a buyer or landlord needs in writing.
Supply and return air temperatures, compared with the data plate, confirm the systems are heating and cooling to specification.
An Old Town purchase usually means an older furnace, sometimes a swamp cooler instead of central air conditioning, and a house that has been heated and cooled in ways the listing does not describe.
After: The inspection documents the furnace’s age and condition, the heat exchanger, and whether the house has central cooling at all — so the buyer knows what the heating and cooling actually are before closing.
Call (970) 932-2324 →A Rigden Farm homeowner heading into the heating season wants one answer: will the condensing furnace hold through the winter? The inspection checks the igniter, the flame sensor, the condensate drain, and the heat exchanger.
After: The findings are written down with the readings that support them, so the homeowner knows what is fine, what is wearing, and what to fix before October.
Call (970) 932-2324 →A Campus West rental turning over between tenants needs a documented inspection: filter, safety checks, system condition, and a written record that the furnace was serviced before the next tenant moved in.
After: The inspection resets the system for the next tenancy and gives the landlord a written record of its condition — which is what a turnover inspection is for.
Call (970) 932-2324 →An inspection is usually booked for one of these four reasons. Here is what each one needs.
Ask a pro →A pre-1990 furnace is often on its second or third cycle. The inspection documents its age, condition, and remaining life — and whether the house has central cooling at all.
A furnace with no service history is a guess. The inspection reads the fault codes, checks the heat exchanger, and measures the combustion numbers — the evidence, not the guess.
A system that cannot hold temperature evenly is often the wrong size for the house at altitude, or fighting duct leakage. The inspection measures both.
A system burning more fuel for the same heat is losing efficiency somewhere. The inspection finds the waste — ducts, charge, or a furnace that is done.
Colorado has no state HVAC licence — HVAC work in Fort Collins is licensed by the City of Fort Collins, not the state. Colorado licenses only electricians and plumbers at the state level. Fort Collins licenses HVAC contractors through the City — ask us for our licence details when you call. We pull a mechanical permit for replacements through the City’s Accela portal, and size equipment to ACCA Manual J. Refrigerant handling follows EPA Section 608 rules.
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✓ VerifiedOnce a year, in the fall, before the heating season starts. That is the question Fort Collins homeowners ask most, and the answer is the same on every ranking local page: an annual fall visit, timed for the September–October shoulder season. An inspection is the assessment version of that visit — a tune-up cleans and adjusts, an inspection finds out and reports.
The furnace, the air conditioner or heat pump, the ductwork, the thermostat, and the safety controls — tested and reported on in writing. The heat exchanger is visually inspected, the flue gas is read with a combustion analyzer, gas pressure is checked, refrigerant charge is verified, and duct leakage is measured. You get a written summary of what is fine, what is wearing, and what needs attention.
Yes. A tune-up cleans and adjusts — flame sensor, filter, condensate drain, and the like. An inspection assesses and reports — it tests the whole system and writes down the findings. They overlap: an inspection will find the things a tune-up should fix, and a tune-up will find the things an inspection should report. The difference is the deliverable: a tune-up leaves a serviced system, an inspection leaves a written report.
Yes — especially in a pre-1990 home. Nearly half of Fort Collins homes were built before 1990, and a large share of furnaces are on their second or third cycle. An inspection documents the furnace’s age and condition, the heat exchanger, and whether the house has central cooling at all — many older homes were built for evaporative coolers or open windows. That is information worth having before closing, not after the first cold snap.
Whether you are buying a home, turning over a rental, or heading into the heating season, an inspection gives you the answer in writing. Call (970) 932-2324 and book the visit. We are open 24 hours, every day.
Call Now (970) 932-2324 →Call us at (970) 932-2324 any time, day or night. We are open 24 hours, 7 days a week. There is no email address for the business — the phone is the way to reach us.