What To Do If Your Heat Suddenly Stops Working
As the weather starts to get cooler and winter approaches, having working heat in your home is important. If the heating system stops working, there are some things you can do to try and get the heat on again before calling for professional help.
Check the Thermostat
If your heat is not working properly, one of the first things you can check is the thermostat that controls the heat in your home. If you have central heat and air conditioning, the thermostat controls both and the mode can change from heat to air with the touch of a button.
Check to make sure that the thermostat was not accidentally switched to air conditioning when the temperature was being adjusted. Sometimes there is a switch on the side of the thermostat and other times it is on the face of it if your thermostat uses a touchscreen.
Check the Power
The heat will not run without electricity, even if you have a boiler that uses oil or a furnace that uses gas. Electricity creates the spark on the igniter every time the furnace turns on so, without it, the unit will not start.
Check the breaker panel in your home first and see if the breaker is on. You may need to look and see if there is a circuit breaker on the furnace that might be off. If you appear to have power and the unit still will not run, you need to look further for a bigger problem.
Check the Fuel Level
If after you check the thermostat and the power, you still can't get the furnace or heating unit to run, you should check the fuel tank to make sure that there is enough fuel in it. Sometimes if you forget to fill the fuel tank, the furnace or heating system can run out and then the system can't heat the home.
The fuel tank should have a gauge on it to indicate how much fuel is in it but you may have to look around to find it. If the tank appears to be empty, you will have to have a fuel delivery before restarting the system.
If you check all of these things and the heat still will not come one, call your local heating repair service company and have them check the system for you. There are circuit breakers and sensors that can cause the system to shut down, but most of them require the knowledge that a professional service technician has to find and reset them.