Heating repair is the call we get most often from Tiburon. The peninsula rarely freezes, but fog and evening breezes off the water keep houses cool, and many homes run the heat on most evenings of the year. That steady use wears out ignition parts, blower motors and controls, and in large homes the zoning that keeps each level comfortable adds its own points of failure. Whether you live in a cottage near downtown or one of the waterfront estates, the first step is the same: find out exactly what stopped, then decide what to do.
Which system do you have?
Tiburon homes use a mix of heating systems, and the likely fault depends on which one is yours:
- Gas furnaces in a garage, attic, hall closet or crawlspace, often paired with central air. Most no-heat calls are ignition, flame sensing, the inducer and pressure switch, or the blower. See furnace repair in Tiburon.
- Heat pumps, ducted or ductless, which heat all winter and live outdoors in salt air. Defrost faults, sensors and corroded electrical parts are the usual suspects. See heat pump repair in Tiburon.
- Boilers with radiant floors in some homes, where a no-heat problem can be the boiler, a circulator pump, a zone valve or the controls.
- Zoned forced-air systems in larger houses, with a control board, motorized dampers and a thermostat for each area.
What we check first
We start with what is cheap and common before what is expensive and rare. The thermostat and its power, the filter, and the fault code most modern furnaces flash on the control board tell us where to look. Then we test the ignition sequence step by step: inducer, pressure switch, igniter, gas valve, flame sensor. On a heat pump we check whether it is heating at all, stuck in defrost or leaning on backup heat. In zoned homes we test each damper and zone thermostat, because one cold floor is often a damper problem, not a furnace problem.
Common problems and what they take
| Symptom | Likely cause | Usual fix |
|---|---|---|
| Furnace lights, then shuts off after a few seconds | Dirty flame sensor | Clean or replace the sensor |
| Inducer runs, burners never light | Pressure switch, blocked vent or condensate trap, failed igniter | Testing and the failed part |
| Blows cold air | Overheating on a dirty filter, ignition fault, or thermostat on fan On | Filter, ignition repair or a setting |
| Heat on one level only | Zone damper or zone board fault | Damper motor or board repair |
| Heat pump ices up and stays iced | Defrost sensor or control fault | Sensor or board repair |
| Burning smell that does not fade | Overheating motor, wiring or debris near the burners | Turn it off and call |
Safety first
If you smell gas, do not touch light switches or the thermostat. Leave the house and call the gas utility or 911 from outside. If a carbon monoxide alarm sounds, get everyone out and call for help. A furnace with a cracked heat exchanger or a blocked vent can produce carbon monoxide, which is why we check venting and combustion on gas furnaces as part of the repair.
How a visit works
- Tell us the symptoms: what the system does, any fault code, which rooms are cold.
- Dispatch: a technician trained on your type of system, the same day where possible.
- Diagnosis: we identify every issue affecting the heat, not just the first one we find.
- Your approval: you review the price before any work starts.
- Heat restored: we repair, run the system through full cycles and confirm it works.
Repairs carry a 90-day warranty, and parts carry the manufacturer’s warranty. If the system is old and the repair is large, we also price a new furnace or a heat pump so you can compare. For urgent calls, see emergency HVAC in Tiburon; for the general picture, our heating repair page and the Tiburon service area page.