HVAC Service in Center Valley, PA
Heating and cooling across Upper Saucon Township, where propane runs deeper than anywhere nearby
Center Valley is an unincorporated community in Upper Saucon Township, at Routes 309 and 378, ZIP code 18034, about a mile north of Coopersburg. People search for Center Valley, but the municipality is Upper Saucon Township, and that is who handles your permit.
The township counts 17,484 residents and a median year built of 1987, decades newer than the boroughs nearby. Only 5.8 percent predates 1940, and 34.9 percent went up in 2000 or later. Unity Heating & Air Conditioning works out of Macungie; Tyler Furbacher owns the company, quotes the job and installs it.
Electricity heats 35.5 percent of households and gas 31.6 percent, but the number that sets this township apart is propane at 6.3 percent, the highest share in the region and three to five times the borough and city rate. Fuel oil adds 20.1 percent and wood 3.3 percent.
A township of two halves
One half is the built-up spine along 309: Promenade Saucon Valley opened in 2006, Stabler Corporate Center anchors the office side, and DeSales University sits nearby. Around it are 2000s subdivisions, and a third of the township’s housing dates from 2000 or later, putting a lot of original equipment past twenty years old and near the end of its life.
The other half is large-lot development past the end of the gas mains, built around delivered fuel from the start, with propane or oil heating systems and a wood stove or fireplace insert carrying the shoulder season. That is a different technical problem, and the fuel is why.
Propane, in the detail that actually matters
Propane comes with questions natural gas customers never face, and they belong in the conversation before anyone picks a new propane or natural gas system.
- Who owns the tank. A leased tank ties you to the supplier who set it; an owned tank leaves you free to shop deliveries
- Tank size and placement, which govern fill scheduling and the clearances new venting must respect
- Conversion kits, since a furnace built for natural gas needs orifices and valve parts matched to that model before it can burn propane
- Operating cost, because propane delivers fewer BTUs per dollar than natural gas, so efficiency buys back more here than on a main
Why dual fuel fits this township
When the backup fuel is expensive, a heat pump paired with a propane or oil furnace often makes more sense than either alone. The heat pump carries the mild and moderate hours, which is most of a season running roughly 5,800 heating degree days, and the furnace takes over below a changeover point set for your house, not left at a factory default.
Sizing still comes from the numbers: a winter design temperature near 8 F, a summer design temperature around 91 F, and a load calculation on the actual house. On dual fuel the air handler and controls have to be matched deliberately, since that decides whether the changeover behaves.
The 2000s houses and their first replacement
A house built in 2003 is on its original system until it is not. Compressors, heat exchangers and coils tend to go in that window, and by then the refrigerant, the standards and the code have moved. A first full system replacement is worth planning rather than reacting to, and central air conditioning work often gets scheduled the spring before it fails. Tight construction also holds humidity and whatever else is in the air, so indoor air quality equipment and good filtration matter more than in a drafty 1940s house.
Frequently asked questions about HVAC work in Center Valley
My address says Center Valley. Who issues the permit?
Upper Saucon Township. Center Valley is a community name and a ZIP code, not a municipality. KEYCODES Inspection Agency, 610-866-9663, is the township’s Building Code Official, and Township Community Development can be reached at 610-282-1171. Pennsylvania adopted the 2021 IRC and 2021 IECC on January 1, 2026.
Can I switch from propane to natural gas?
Only if a main reaches you. Being inside UGI’s territory describes a region, not your street. UGI extends a service line at no cost within 150 feet of an existing main, and past that the run is a homeowner cost. Confirm the distance first, because it usually decides the answer.
Is a propane furnace different from a natural gas furnace?
The cabinet is often the same model, but burner orifices and gas valve components are not interchangeable, so the correct conversion kit has to be installed and the unit set up for the new fuel. Propane also runs at a different supply pressure, so regulation and line sizing get checked too.
We heat partly with a wood stove. Does that change the sizing?
It changes how the system is used, not what it has to cover. Sizing assumes the stove is cold, because at some point it will be. Combustion appliances in a tight house share air with the rest of the building, so venting and combustion air get checked at replacement.
Book HVAC service in Center Valley
Call Unity Heating & Air Conditioning at (267) 644-9516 to get on the schedule, or send the details through the contact page. Repairs, cleanings, installations and replacements across Upper Saucon Township run out of Macungie. Emergency scheduling is available at any hour.
