Petworth runs on furnaces that have outlasted several owners. The porch-front Wardman rowhouses and Craftsman bungalows lining Georgia Avenue, Quincy, and Webster streets were built in the 1910s through 1930s, and a lot of them still heat through original or first-replacement gas furnaces tucked into narrow basements or back-of-house utility closets. When one of these units stops producing heat on a 20-degree January night, you need a tech who has actually worked on older DC heating systems — not someone seeing a 30-year-old furnace and a hand-built duct run for the first time. We diagnose the real cause fast: a failed hot-surface igniter, a flame sensor caked with residue, a seized blower motor, or short-cycling from a clogged filter or bad limit switch.
Because so many Petworth furnaces are at or past replacement age, we take the safety side seriously. A cracked heat exchanger on an aging unit can leak carbon monoxide into the living space, and that's not something to gamble on in a tightly sealed brick rowhouse. Every no-heat call includes a combustion and heat-exchanger check, so you know whether you're looking at a $200 igniter swap or a furnace that genuinely needs to be retired. We give you the honest read and a flat-rate price before any work starts — most Petworth furnace repairs land between $150 and $650 — so there are no surprises after the heat comes back on.
Petworth note: Many Petworth basements are low and tight, with the furnace sharing space against a foundation wall and feeding hand-built duct runs original to the 1920s house — so we bring compact tools and check the supply trunk and return for the leaks and restrictions that make these older systems short-cycle and run cold.
Common Furnace Repair Issues We Fix in Petworth
- Furnace blowing cold air or producing no heat at all
- Failed igniter or dirty flame sensor (furnace starts then shuts off)
- Short-cycling — turning on and off rapidly
- Cracked heat exchanger creating a carbon monoxide danger
- Blower motor failure or weak airflow
- High-limit safety switch tripping repeatedly
What's Included
- Full diagnostic to pinpoint the exact cause of the no-heat or performance issue
- Igniter, flame sensor, and ignition system repair or replacement
- Blower motor, capacitor, and control board troubleshooting
- Limit switch, thermostat, and safety control testing
- Carbon monoxide and cracked heat exchanger safety inspection
- Repairs for short-cycling, cold-air, and frequent shutdown problems
- Upfront flat-rate quote and a satisfaction guarantee on every repair
Explore our full Furnace Repair service, or see all HVAC services in Petworth.
What It Costs
In Washington, DC, a furnace diagnostic typically runs about $75 to $200, and that fee tells us exactly what's wrong before any repair starts. Most furnace repairs fall between $150 and $650 depending on the failed part, whether it's a flame sensor, igniter, capacitor, or blower motor. Every job comes with a flat-rate quote up front, and we're happy to provide a free estimate before you commit, so just call to get an honest number for your situation.