60-minute guarantee · Coupon
Later than 60 minutes from call to door?
Here’s $60 off.
No code to remember: tell your plumber or our dispatcher and $60 comes off the invoice. Good 24/7 on emergency calls in our service areas. Guarantee terms
Open 24/7 · 60-minute guarantee
Boiler Repair
Steam and hot-water boilers still heat a lot of homes and apartment buildings — until one quits on the coldest night of the year. We diagnose and repair residential and commercial boilers, and we know what an old steam system needs.
At your location in 60 minutes or you save $60.
The short answer
No heat? Check that the boiler’s service switch is on and the thermostat is calling for heat. On a steam boiler, look for water in the sight glass — if it’s empty, switch the boiler off and don’t add water while it’s hot. Still no heat, a leak, or a smell of gas? Call us (for gas, get out first and call 911 or the gas utility from outside). We fix steam and hot-water boilers 24/7, with the price before any repair.
Is this an emergency?
Call now if…
- No heat when it’s freezing outside — pipes can freeze within hours
- You smell gas or see scorch marks near the boiler
- Water is leaking from the boiler or near-boiler piping
- Pressure gauge reads in the red (hot-water systems)
Can usually wait for a scheduled visit
- One radiator slow to heat
- Occasional mild knocking at start-up
Not sure? Call anyway — we’ll tell you honestly.
Do this right now
- If you smell gas: get everyone out, don’t touch light switches, and call 911 or the gas utility from outside.
- If it’s leaking: switch the boiler off at its service switch and close the feed valve.
- Open cabinet doors under sinks on outside walls to keep pipes warmer.
Signs you need us
- No heat, or heat in only some rooms
- Banging or hammering in the pipes or radiators
- Water pooling under the boiler
- Pilot light out or the burner short-cycling
- Low-water cutoff tripping repeatedly
- Water spitting or hissing from a radiator air vent
- Pressure gauge climbing toward the red, or the relief valve dripping
- Boiler running constantly while the rooms stay cold
How we handle the call
- 01
Safety check first
Gas, flue and pressure checks before anything else — no repair is worth a carbon-monoxide risk.
- 02
Diagnose the whole system
Controls, low-water cutoff, burner, circulator, valves and the near-boiler piping — on steam and hot-water systems.
- 03
Price before repair
You get the price for the fix before we start, with the options laid out when there’s more than one.
- 04
Get the heat back on
We fix it on the spot when parts allow, or get heat running safely while a part is on its way.
- 05
Straight answers
If repair isn’t worth it, we’ll say so, show you why and quote replacement upfront.
Know your building
Boilers in older houses and apartment buildings
Many older apartment buildings, walk-ups and rowhouses still heat with steam, often one-pipe steam: a single pipe carries steam up to each radiator and the condensed water drains back down the same pipe. When those pipes lose their pitch, water pools in them and the next rush of steam slams into it — that’s the banging. Newer houses and conversions are more often hot-water systems with circulator pumps and zone valves, which fail in different ways. In a house, the boiler usually sits in the basement or a utility room; in an apartment building, one boiler room can heat every apartment, so a single failed part leaves the whole building cold.
Many cities and states require landlords to keep rental homes heated in cold weather and to provide hot water all year, with the exact temperatures and dates set locally. If you rent and the heat is out, tell your landlord or super in writing — in a rental building, keeping the boiler running is the owner’s job. Owners, supers and managing agents of rental buildings, co-ops and condos call us to get the heat back on fast. Where the boiler also makes the hot water — through a coil or an indirect tank — a breakdown takes out heat and hot water together, so we check the whole system, not just the part that failed.
One visit, whole job
Everything covered on the call
- No-heat diagnosis
- Steam and hot-water systems
- Burner, ignition and control faults
- Low-water cutoff testing and cleaning
- Pressure and circulation faults
- Radiator air vents and valves
- Zone valves and circulators
- Leaking heating pipework
- Bleeding, balancing and expansion tanks
Upfront price, every time
What boiler repair costs
Most no-heat calls come down to one failed part: a thermocouple or igniter, a low-water cutoff, a circulator pump, a zone valve or a thermostat. Those are straightforward repairs, often finished the same visit when the part is on hand. Burner work, control boards and leaking near-boiler piping take longer and cost more.
Steam systems add one more factor: when banging or uneven heat comes from pipes that have lost their pitch, the fix is in the piping, not the boiler. Either way, we find the cause first and give you the price before we start.
Honest advice
Repair or replace the boiler?
A boiler with a failed control, cutoff or pump is usually worth repairing: the boiler itself — the expensive part — still has years in it.
Replacement starts to make sense when the boiler is cracked or leaking, when it needs a major repair every winter, or when an old, oversized unit burns far more fuel than the building needs. We show you what we found and price repair and replacement side by side, so the decision is yours.
Mistakes that make it worse
- Adding water to a hot steam boiler with an empty sight glass — the cold water can crack it
- Turning a one-pipe steam radiator valve halfway to turn it down — it causes banging and spitting; those valves go fully open or fully closed
- Painting over radiator air vents or blocking radiators with furniture — the vents have to breathe for the radiator to heat
- Ignoring a dripping relief valve on a hot-water system — it’s telling you the pressure is wrong
Keep it from happening again
- Have the boiler serviced every year before the heating season starts
- On a steam boiler, check the water level in the sight glass every week or two through the winter
- Replace radiator air vents that hiss, spit or stay shut
- Keep the boiler area clear — nothing stored against it and nothing blocking the air it needs to burn
The 60-minute guarantee
The clock starts when our dispatcher confirms your job. If we’re late, $60 comes off your invoice. No forms, no fine-print games. Read the terms
FAQ
Boiler Repair questions
Why do my radiators bang?
In steam systems it’s usually water trapped in pipes that have lost their pitch, or a boiler water level problem. It’s fixable.
Why is one radiator cold when the others are hot?
On steam, it’s usually a stuck air vent or a valve that isn’t fully open. On hot-water systems, it’s often air trapped in the radiator or a zone valve that isn’t opening. Both are quick fixes.
My boiler keeps shutting off. Why?
It could be the low-water cutoff doing its job because the water is low, a failing flame sensor or thermocouple, or a pressure problem. Don’t keep resetting it — repeated lockouts mean something needs attention.
Does my landlord have to keep the heat on?
Often, yes. Many cities and states require landlords to heat rental homes in cold weather and to supply hot water all year, but the exact temperatures and dates are set locally — your local housing or code enforcement office can tell you the rules where you live. If the heat goes out, tell your landlord or super in writing; owners and managers can call us to get it running again.
Do you work on commercial and multifamily boilers?
Yes. We service boilers in walk-ups, co-ops, restaurants and commercial buildings as well as private homes.
Can you come at night when the heat goes out?
Yes — a no-heat call in winter is exactly what we’re here for, 24/7.
More we handle
Real People. Real Help.
Water on the floor? Call now.
Fast Help. Fair Pricing. Professional Plumbing Service.
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