Emergency furnace repair: no heat tonight? Start here
If you smell gas or a carbon monoxide alarm is sounding, leave the house and call your gas utility or 911 from outside. For a plain no-heat problem, check the thermostat, breaker, furnace switch and filter first. If the furnace still will not run and the house is getting cold, call for emergency furnace repair and keep everyone warm safely while you wait.
Safety first. If you smell gas (a rotten-egg odor) or a carbon monoxide alarm sounds, leave the house right away and call your gas utility or 911 from outside. Do not flip switches, use a phone indoors, or try to find the leak. Never heat the house with a gas oven, range, grill or generator indoors.
What counts as a furnace emergency
Some heating problems cannot wait for a weekday appointment. Treat these as emergencies:
- Gas smell. Leave first, then call the gas utility or 911 from outside.
- Carbon monoxide alarm, or people feeling sick. Headache, dizziness, weakness, nausea, sleepiness or confusion while the furnace runs are warning signs. Get everyone to fresh air and call 911.
- Burning electrical smell, smoke or sparks. Turn the furnace off at its switch or breaker and call.
- No heat in freezing weather, especially with infants, older adults or anyone with a medical condition in the home, or when pipes are at risk of freezing.
No heat on a mild night is uncomfortable, and it can usually wait for regular hours, which often costs less.
Checks to run before you call
These take a few minutes and are safe to do yourself:
- Set the thermostat to Heat and raise the setting a few degrees above room temperature. Replace the batteries if the screen is dim or blank.
- Check the furnace breaker in the electrical panel. Reset a tripped breaker once. If it trips again, leave it off.
- Find the switch on or near the furnace. It looks like a light switch and gets bumped off by accident.
- Pull the filter. If it is packed with dust, replace it.
- On a high-efficiency furnace, look at the plastic vent pipes outside. Clear away snow, ice or leaves from the openings.
- Look through the small window on the furnace door for a blinking light and count the flashes. Tell the dispatcher the pattern.
The full walk-through is in the furnace repair guide.
While you wait for the technician
Close doors to unused rooms and gather everyone in one area. Use electric space heaters only on a hard, level floor, well away from bedding, curtains and furniture, plugged straight into a wall outlet, and never unattended or while you sleep. Do not use a gas oven, stovetop, grill, camp stove or generator for heat indoors. All of them can fill a home with carbon monoxide.
If the temperature inside keeps dropping in freezing weather, open the cabinet doors under sinks on outside walls and let a thin stream of water run from those faucets to help protect the pipes. Clear a path to the furnace and write down the furnace brand, model number and the blink code so the technician can bring likely parts.
What a fair emergency visit looks like
A good technician tests before replacing anything, shows you the failed part or the reading that condemns it, and gives a firm price up front. If the fix is a large repair on an old furnace, you can ask for a temporary repair or safe shutdown tonight and take a day to compare quotes. You are not obligated to approve a replacement at midnight.
Common questions
What is a no heat emergency versus a problem that can wait?
It is an emergency when there is a gas smell, a carbon monoxide alarm, a burning smell, or no heat in freezing weather with vulnerable people or pipes at risk. A furnace that quits on a mild evening, with the house still comfortable, can usually wait for a regular appointment.
Can I use my oven to heat the house until emergency heating repair arrives?
No. A gas oven or range used for space heating can produce carbon monoxide, and an electric oven left open is a burn and fire hazard. Use electric space heaters with clear space around them, extra layers and blankets, and keep everyone in one room.
How do I find emergency furnace repair near me quickly?
Call a licensed local heating contractor that answers after hours, and have your furnace brand, model number, the blink code and the symptoms ready. Confirm the emergency fee and arrival window on the phone. If nobody can come and the house is unsafe, stay with family, friends or at a warming center.
Next step
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