HVAC Emergencies: When to Leave and Who to Call
Gas odor, a CO alarm, smoke, fire or electrical danger comes before HVAC troubleshooting. Follow the emergency steps below. Do not wait for a contractor appointment or start checking the equipment.
Start with the immediate danger
You smell gas or suspect a natural-gas leak
- Leave immediately. Move outside and away from the area where you smell gas.
- From that safe location, call 911, then your gas utility’s emergency number.
While leaving, avoid phones, electrical switches, appliances, garage-door controls and flames. Do not search for the leak or stop to open windows. Stay out until the gas utility or emergency responders say you may return.
If DTE is your natural-gas utility, its gas-leak hotline is 800-947-5000. Otherwise, contact your own gas utility from safety.
A carbon monoxide alarm sounds, or you suspect CO poisoning
Go outside into fresh air immediately and call 911. After calling, account for everyone and tell responders if someone is missing. Do not go back inside until emergency responders allow it.
Do not investigate the source, silence the alarm and stay inside, or check the thermostat or breaker first. If a faulty appliance is identified as the source, keep it out of use until trained personnel have serviced it. Suspected poisoning needs prompt medical attention.
There is smoke or fire
Leave the building using a safe escape route and call 911 from outside. Stay out. If you cannot escape, call 911 and tell the dispatcher your location. Follow responders’ instructions; do not return to turn equipment off or retrieve belongings.
There is an electrical shock or electrical fire
Keep away from the equipment and call 911 from a safe location. Do not touch a person who is still in contact with an electrical source, and do not put water on an electrical fire. If there is smoke or fire, use the evacuation guidance above. Leave electrical isolation and investigation to emergency responders or qualified personnel.
Loss of heat or cooling can still be urgent
Plan for people’s safety before the repair. If indoor conditions are becoming unsafe, arrange a safe heated or cooled place, especially for anyone who needs help moving. If you suspect heat stroke or hypothermia, call 911. Do not wait for HVAC service to address a medical emergency.
National Weather Service: heat-illness warning signs
CDC: hypothermia warning signs and response
When there is no immediate danger: prepare a service request
Use this section only when there is no gas odor, CO alarm, smoke, fire or electrical danger, and any required emergency clearance has been given. From a safe location, note:
- Which equipment is affected and when the problem started.
- What it is doing: not heating, not cooling, shutting down, leaking or making a new noise.
- The thermostat display, room temperature or an error message already visible without opening a panel.
- Your location and any access information needed for a visit.
Do not reset breakers, repeatedly restart or relight equipment, remove covers or bypass safety controls for this checklist. A symptom or error message is a clue, not a diagnosis. Ask the technician what was measured, what caused the problem and how the proposed repair or replacement addresses it.
Use the service information that fits the problem
Request service after the immediate safety issue is addressed
Share the symptoms and location with Cooley Mechanical. Service requests are accepted 24/7. Service is subject to availability.
Submitting a service request does not replace calling 911 or your utility for an emergency.