What to Do During a No-Heat Emergency
If your furnace stopped working, check the thermostat, the breaker and furnace power switch, your fuel tank, and the air filter. In Falls Creek-area homes, one of these is often the cause. If none of them gets the heat back on, keep your family warm safely, protect your plumbing, and call an HVAC technician.
This guide walks through those system controls in order, then covers how to stay warm, protect your pipes, and know when a no-heat emergency needs a professional.
Essential System Checks Before You Call for Service
Before assuming your heating equipment needs a major repair, take a few minutes for some basic heating troubleshooting. Many outages come down to power, settings, or fuel.
Verify Your Thermostat Settings and Power
Make sure the thermostat is set to Heat, and the temperature is set higher than the current room temperature. If the screen is blank or flashing and your thermostat uses batteries, replace them. A thermostat with weak batteries can lose its connection to the furnace or boiler.
Check Electrical Panels and Equipment Switches
Your heating system needs power to run the blower, control board, and igniter. At your breaker panel, check whether the heating system’s circuit breaker has tripped to the middle or off position. If it has, push it firmly to off, then back to on. If it trips again, leave it off and call a technician. Next, check the furnace power switch, which looks like a light switch on or near the furnace. It’s easy to bump off by accident.
Check Your Fuel Supply and Reset Switch
If you heat with oil or propane, check the tank gauge. If your oil burner has a red reset button, press it only once. Pressing it again and again can flood the burner with oil. An oil system that ran out of fuel may need a technician to restart it. For boilers, check that the pressure gauge reads within the normal range marked on it, since low pressure can shut a boiler down.
Pilot Light Troubleshooting
Older furnaces and boilers with a standing pilot light have relighting instructions on a label near the burner. If you smell gas, don’t try. If the pilot won’t stay lit, call a technician.
Inspect Air Filters and Vents
A badly clogged filter can trip a safety switch that shuts the furnace off when it overheats. Pull the filter and check it. If it’s blocked, put in a clean one and give the furnace several minutes to cool down and reset. Then make sure furniture, rugs, and drapes aren’t blocking registers or return grilles.
Keeping Warm and Safeguarding Your Plumbing
If the heat won’t come back on, focus on keeping warm and protecting your pipes until help arrives.
Preserve Indoor Heat
Close the doors to unused rooms and gather everyone in one central room. Close blinds and heavy curtains, and put rolled towels or draft stoppers along exterior doors.
Space Heater Safety
If you use a portable electric space heater, set it on a flat, hard surface at least three feet from blankets, curtains, and furniture, and plug it directly into a wall outlet. Never leave it running unattended or overnight. Never heat your home with a gas stove, oven, grill, or generator. They produce carbon monoxide.
Frozen Pipe Prevention
Pipes in exterior walls, basements, and unheated crawlspaces are most at risk. Open the cabinet doors under kitchen and bathroom sinks so warm air reaches the water supply lines. Let faucets on exterior walls drip slowly. Moving water is less likely to freeze, which helps prevent ruptured pipes and water damage.
Recognizing When Professional Repair Is Required
Some problems involve high-voltage electricity, fuel lines, or burner parts that need a professional. If the checks above don’t bring the heat back, call an experienced contractor.
Warning Signs That Demand Immediate Attention
- Gas smell (natural gas or propane): Get everyone out without touching light switches or electronics. From outside, call your gas utility or propane supplier and 911.
- Carbon monoxide alarm: If your carbon monoxide detector sounds, get everyone outside and call 911 from outdoors.
- Grinding noises, burning electrical smells, or water pooling around the furnace or boiler: Turn the system off and call a licensed technician.
What Technicians Inspect During a Service Visit
A technician uses diagnostic tools to find exactly what failed. They check the flame sensor, igniter, gas valve, draft inducer motor, and pressure switches, and test the electrical parts to make sure the system is running safely.
Staying Safe Until the Heat Is Back
Knowing what to do during a heating breakdown helps you stay calm and protect your home. Checking the thermostat, breakers, fuel, and air filters means you can often fix a simple problem yourself. If not, keeping your family warm and your pipes from freezing buys time until a technician arrives and helps get your heat back before freezing temperatures cause damage.
Schedule Professional Heating Service Today
Gary & Sons, Inc. has served Falls Creek, PA, and the surrounding area since 1978. If your furnace or boiler has stopped working, our licensed technicians can find the problem, explain the repair, and get your heat back on with upfront pricing. Contact us to schedule heating repair in Falls Creek, PA.