Vet an HVAC Contractor in NH

Updated 2026-09-30

New Hampshire does not issue a single license called "HVAC contractor." If someone tells you the state licensed them as a general HVAC mechanic, ask what the credential is actually called. The work splits across fuel gas, plumbing, electrical, and a voluntary oil certification. You should look the person up yourself. Calling (603) 420-0791 connects you with an independent contractor in the referral network. It is not a state verification, and this site does not claim to have inspected anyone's license. TODO: the operator has not published a written screening checklist. Do not treat a returned call as proof of licensure.

Who the state actually regulates

The Mechanical Licensing Board, inside the Office of Professional Licensure and Certification, says it regulates fuel gas fitters (trainee, installation, service, piping, domestic appliance, and hearth system installation and service), plumbers (trainee, journeyman, and master), oil heating technicians on a voluntary basis, and business entities such as corporations, LLCs, and partnerships. That is the board's own description on its site. The board's page is oplc.nh.gov/find-board/mechanical-licensing-board.

What that means in a house: connecting or servicing gas or propane piping and appliances is fuel-gas work. Plumbing a boiler, a water heater, or hydronic piping is plumbing work. Air conditioning and refrigeration work that never touches fuel gas is not, by itself, what that board licenses. Electrical wiring is a separate license under the Electricians' Board. A company can be legitimate and still need more than one credential on a combined job. Ask who will be on site and which license covers each part.

Oil heat is called out as voluntary certification at that board. Ask an oil technician what certification they hold anyway, and ask for insurance. Voluntary does not mean you should skip the conversation.

How to look someone up

Use the OPLC license lookup, not a screenshot in a text message. Start at oplc.nh.gov and open the verification or license-lookup tool the site is currently offering. Search the person and the business. Check that the status is active, that the classification matches the work (fuel gas fitting, plumbing, or the specific gas-fitter category), and that the expiration date has not passed. A business entity that performs fuel-gas fitting has its own mechanical business application. Ask for the business name as registered, not only the truck lettering.

Write down the license number and the expiration date in the notes of the quote. If the status is not active, stop.

The board's page tells people with an inspection question or a safety concern to contact the Department of Safety. The number printed there, as reviewed, is (603) 271-2791. Use that for a safety or inspection issue. It is not the referral line for a new heating quote.

Insurance

A license is not insurance. Ask for a certificate of insurance that shows general liability, the carrier, and the dates. If the contractor has employees, ask about workers' compensation. The Mechanical Licensing Board's public pages say a mechanical business entity must provide proof of liability insurance. They do not, in the summary on the board page, publish a dollar minimum for every individual fitter. You can still ask for the certificate and decide the limits are too low for your house. This website will not invent a required limit.

Permits

Towns and cities permit equipment changes differently. Manchester, Nashua, Concord, Portsmouth, and smaller towns do not share one counter. Ask who pulls the permit, whether the town inspects, and what happens if the inspection fails. A contractor who says your town "doesn't require anything" should be willing to say that in the quote. You can call the local building or inspection office and ask before you sign. We do not list street addresses for those offices here.

Quotes and pressure

Get the scope in writing: equipment model, what is reused, what is removed, who does electrical, who does gas, and what is excluded. A price given before a visit is a guess. You do not have to sign a replacement on the same hour as a no-heat call. Compare two scopes if the job is large. Read when to repair or replace so a failed sensor is not sold as a new system without a reason.

What this site will say, and what it will not

We will say that contractors in the network are independent, that they quote the price, and that you must verify license and insurance. We will not say we ran a background check, counted years in business, or visited the shop unless the operator writes that process down. That is an open TODO on how we connect you. Photos on this site are illustrative. People shown are actors or models, not the contractor who will come to your house.

If you want a connection, call (603) 420-0791 and have your ZIP code ready. Then do the lookup yourself before you approve the work.

A simple record to keep

When you hire someone, keep a one-page note: legal business name, license numbers and classes, expiration dates, insurance carrier and dates, the permit number if there is one, and the model numbers installed. Photograph the nameplates. If a warranty claim happens in year six, that page is the difference between a covered part and a shrug. If a later contractor needs to know what refrigerant is in the system, the nameplate photo is faster than a guess.

Trust is not the same as familiarity. A neighbor's recommendation is a start and not a lookup. Do the lookup anyway. Polite contractors expect it. Anyone who argues that you should not verify a license is telling you what to do next, which is to hire someone else. The referral line will connect another call if you ask. It will not argue you out of the lookup.

Use the same standard on a small repair and a large replacement. The dollars change. The license question does not. A capacitor replacement that includes electrical work and a boiler replacement that includes gas piping are both moments to know who is allowed to do the work. If the person in the house is an apprentice or a helper, ask who the licensed person is and whether they will be on site for the regulated steps. New Hampshire's fuel-gas categories exist so that distinction is real. You are not being difficult. You are reading the rules the board published. When the paperwork matches the person, hire them or do not, based on the quote and your own judgment.

How to vet an HVAC contractor in New Hampshire