What HVAC Services Does Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning Offer in Evanston, IL?
Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning installs, repairs, and maintains air conditioners, furnaces, heat pumps, boilers, ductless systems, and indoor air quality equipment for homes and businesses throughout Evanston, IL. The company has done this work since 1904. Call 847-861-5559 or request service online to schedule a technician.
Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning is headquartered a short drive south in Skokie, so a technician is rarely far from Evanston.
Family-Owned & Operated Since 1904 | Carrier Factory Authorized Dealer | Carrier President’s Award Winner | 4.9 Stars from 2,900+ Google Reviews
Air Conditioning Installation, Repair & Replacement
An AC that’s running constantly or blowing warm air off Lake Michigan humidity is usually a specific, fixable problem, not proof the unit is done. Air conditioning covers diagnosis, repair, full replacement, and seasonal maintenance for central air conditioning systems, checking refrigerant charge, the capacitor, and the coil before recommending a fix.
The grand homes in the Evanston Lakeshore Historic District, developed in the late 1800s and early 1900s near Northwestern University and the lake, deal with more humidity off the water than properties further inland. That changes both how a system should be sized and how often it needs attention, since a unit that’s merely adequate inland can fall behind on a humid lakefront afternoon.
Furnace Installation & Repair
A furnace that’s short-cycling, heating unevenly, or running up the gas bill is more often a repair than a full replacement. Furnaces starts by finding what’s actually wrong, a failing igniter or a clogged flame sensor are the usual suspects, and only recommends a full install when the equipment itself has genuinely reached the end of the line.
Many of the Colonial and Tudor Revival homes in the Oakton Historic District date to the 1913-to-1940 building boom in south Evanston, and their furnaces are often original equipment or close to it. A fall inspection before the first hard freeze is cheap insurance against a no-heat call in the middle of a January cold snap.
Heat Pumps & Dual-Fuel Systems
Evanston’s heat pump performance comes down to the lake as much as the equipment. Heat pumps covers installation, repair, and maintenance for these systems and dual-fuel setups, built around Evanston’s climate rather than a generic Midwest install.
Being on the shore of Lake Michigan makes Evanston’s winters colder and more humid than towns just a few miles inland. That means more frost buildup on outdoor coils, longer defrost cycles, and more wind-driven heat loss than a heat pump would see in a sheltered, inland location. A system sized for a typical Chicago suburb can end up leaning on backup heat far more than it should here. Pairing a heat pump with backup furnace heat in a dual-fuel setup is often the more realistic answer for a home this close to the water. It’s worth having that conversation before assuming a standard heat pump alone will get a specific house through a lakefront January.
Boiler Installation & Repair
Boiler heat runs quiet and even, which is part of why it’s stuck around in so many of Evanston’s oldest homes. Boilers repairs, maintains, and replaces hydronic systems, working from a properly diagnosed cause rather than a default recommendation either way.
The Evanston Ridge Historic District sits along the glacial ridge where the city’s earliest settlement took root in the 1830s, and it’s home to some of the oldest housing stock in Evanston, much of it still running original or early-generation boiler systems. Understanding how those systems were originally piped is what lets a technician recommend an efficiency upgrade without tearing out something still doing its job.
Ductless Mini-Split Systems
Extending ductwork into one stubborn room usually costs more than the room is worth. Ductless systems installs and repairs mini-split systems purpose-built for additions, converted attics, and spaces that were never part of a home’s original duct layout.
The West End neighborhood, along the North Shore Channel near Washington Elementary, is full of Cape Cod and ranch-style homes where a finished basement or a sunroom addition often has no practical duct access at all. That’s the kind of space a ductless system solves without opening up walls to reach it.
Indoor Air Quality Solutions
Not every comfort complaint is a temperature problem. Indoor air quality covers filtration, purification, and ventilation upgrades for homes dealing with dust, humidity, or air quality issues that a thermostat can’t fix.
Homes near the Ladd Arboretum and the Lakefront Trail sit close to some of the densest tree cover and open water in Evanston, worth knowing when weighing a filtration or ventilation upgrade for a home in that part of the city.
Water Heater Repair & Replacement
Longer recovery times and water that never quite gets hot enough are usually early warnings, not a sign a water heater has failed outright. Water heaters repairs and replaces both tank and tankless units, sizing any replacement to what a household actually uses rather than a standard default.
The Northeast Evanston Historic District’s larger homes, many built between 1890 and 1930 near Sheridan Road and the lake, tend to have bigger households and more bathrooms than the Evanston average, which routinely pushes a standard tank past its limit during peak morning hours. That’s usually when tankless starts to make more sense than another tank.
Zone Control Systems
One thermostat rarely keeps every room in a larger, multi-level home comfortable at once. Zone control systems installs dampers, a control panel, and separate thermostats so each part of a home can be set on its own.
The single-family homes and townhomes along the Green Bay Road corridor on Evanston’s west side tend to run larger and more multi-level than the city’s older lakefront cottages, and those are exactly the layouts where a single thermostat struggles to keep an upstairs bedroom and a finished lower level at the same comfortable temperature.
Commercial HVAC Services
Downtime costs a business more than most repair bills ever do. Commercial services covers installation, replacement, repair, and maintenance for light-commercial heating and cooling, plus maintenance contracts designed to catch problems before they turn into an emergency call.
The shops and restaurants along the Main-Dempster Mile and throughout Downtown Evanston depend on reliable heating and cooling to keep customers and staff comfortable through both a lakefront summer and a Chicago winter.
Why Evanston Homeowners Choose Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning
Four generations of the same family have run Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning since 1904, the kind of history that doesn’t come from a franchise agreement or a private-equity rollup. Technicians are NATE-certified, and the company holds Carrier Factory Authorized Dealer status and the Carrier President’s Award, Carrier’s highest dealer honor. Being headquartered a few minutes south in Skokie means Evanston is close ground, not a long drive.
Evanston HVAC Repair & Replacement Questions, Answered
Why is my air conditioner running but not cooling my Evanston home?
Warm air from the vents or a system that won’t stop running usually points to something specific and fixable: a low refrigerant charge, a failing capacitor, a dirty coil. A technician can diagnose the actual cause before recommending a repair or replacement, rather than assuming the whole unit is at the end of its life.
What are the warning signs my furnace needs repair before an Evanston winter sets in?
A banging or squealing noise, one room that never quite warms up, a flame that’s gone yellow instead of blue, and a gas bill that’s crept up without a clear reason are the usual tells. None of them mean the furnace is finished, but all of them are worth a look before the cold really sets in.
Why does my heat pump rely on backup heat so much in Evanston?
Cold, moisture-heavy air off Lake Michigan is the usual cause. Frost builds up faster on the outdoor coil in that kind of humidity, which triggers longer and more frequent defrost cycles, and a system that isn’t sized or installed with that in mind ends up leaning on backup heat more than it should. A dual-fuel setup pairing a heat pump with backup furnace heat is often the more realistic fix for a home this close to the lake.
What is the $5,000 rule for HVAC, and does it apply to an Evanston home?
The $5,000 rule multiplies a system’s age by the estimated repair cost. If the result tops $5,000, replacement is usually the better long-term option. The math works the same in an older Evanston home near the Oakton Historic District as anywhere else: a 12-year-old system needing a $500 repair comes out to $6,000, past the threshold, while a 7-year-old system with a $400 repair comes out to $2,800, comfortably under it.
Is it worth repairing an older Evanston home’s boiler, or is it time to replace it?
A boiler in one of the older homes near the Evanston Ridge Historic District can often be repaired rather than replaced, since boilers commonly run 10 to 20-plus years longer than a comparable furnace. A single expensive repair on an otherwise reliable boiler doesn’t automatically mean it’s time to replace it, a technician can walk through the actual numbers for that system.
Do I need a permit to replace a furnace or air conditioner in Evanston, IL?
Yes. The City of Evanston requires a building permit for HVAC work, including new air conditioning installations and furnace or equipment replacement, and signed contractor worksheets are required for the job. Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning pulls the required permit as part of any installation or replacement.
How can I tell if my Evanston home has poor indoor air quality?
Persistent dust, rooms that feel muggy in the summer and dry in the winter no matter the thermostat setting, and lingering odors after cleaning are the usual signs. Leaky ductwork or equipment that isn’t managing filtration and humidity properly is often the real cause, worth ruling in or out before chalking it up to lakefront weather.
Schedule HVAC Service in Evanston, IL
From a boiler near the Evanston Ridge Historic District to a new heat pump near downtown to commercial HVAC along the Main-Dempster Mile, Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning handles HVAC work throughout Evanston the same way the company has since 1904: honest advice and work done right the first time. Call 847-861-5559 or request service online to schedule your appointment today.
When the job was complete they carefully cleaned up everything and took the time to explain the use of the new equipment and the new thermostat.
I couldn't ask for better work.
Thank you, Jordan and Linus.”
“Demarius is a pro and responsible . He provided a diagnostic check up for our HVAC. He explained what we needed to do and helped us schedule our follow up. Very helpful!.”