AC repair
Furnace & heating
Heat pumps
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GoodmanSeasonal tune-up and full diagnostic on your Carrier, Trane, or Goodman system - readings shown to you before any repair is proposed
Diagnosis first, numbers second - you approve the repair price before a single part goes in.
Get your free estimateFast, Reliable Furnace Repair Across San Francisco
A furnace repair in San Francisco typically runs between $175 and $825, and most jobs are completed the same day we arrive. If your heat won’t kick on in the Richmond District or you’re hearing a grinding noise from a gravity furnace in the Sunset, we’ll send a background-checked technician to your door, introduced by name and photo before they ever ring the bell. Call (559) 245-8807 and a live person answers, 24 hours a day. Always.
San Francisco’s heating problems don’t look like they do in Fremont or Walnut Creek. The marine fog that rolls through the avenues does something to furnaces that inland cities never see. We know because we’re here, working in these pre-war homes every week, and we’ve spent years learning what fails and why. This page is what we’d tell a neighbor over coffee. Plain, straight, no sales pitch. Just what you need to know about Furnace Repair in this city, and what it should cost.
Why Brandt HVAC Co San Francisco Is San Francisco’s Preferred Furnace Repair Company
Most San Francisco homeowners have one thing in common when they call us: they want to know exactly who is about to walk through their front door. That’s the Brandt HVAC way, and it’s why our name carries weight in neighborhoods from the Outer Sunset to Bayview. Every technician we send is background-checked and identity-verified under the Threshold Verified standard. You get their name and photo before the visit. They show a photo ID at the door. If someone shows up who you weren’t told to expect, that visit is on us and we make it right.
Devin Marlowe leads our team here, and he’s built this operation around one idea: certainty. Certainty about who’s coming. Certainty about the price before any work starts, in writing, every single time. Certainty that the repair carries a written guarantee. If a repair fails within 365 days, we return at no charge under our Done Right Promise. No argument. No invoice. That’s how we work across San Francisco, and it’s why homeowners keep our number posted on their water heater.
Response time matters when your furnace dies on a damp January night. Our San Francisco Bay Area dispatch coordinates crews across the city, and we routinely reach homes in Glen Park, Noe Valley, and the Mission within 90 minutes of your call. Phones are answered by a live person at 3 a.m. the same way they are at noon. No voicemail tree. No callback queue. Just a human who starts solving your problem immediately.
Styles & brands we work with
Furnace Maintenance in San Francisco
Furnace Maintenance in San Francisco is not optional if you own a home west of Twin Peaks. The persistent marine layer that hangs over the Sunset and Richmond districts keeps humidity high and accelerates rust inside older furnace cabinets. A tune-up runs $95 to $235 in this market, and it catches the small failures before they become a $700 repair or a $4,000 replacement. We inspect the heat exchanger for corrosion, test gas pressure at the valve, check flame sensor output, and clean the burner assembly.
For homes with original gravity furnaces, maintenance is even more critical. These units were installed before most San Francisco homes had insulation, and they run harder every winter while the damp air works against them. We see rusted heat exchangers in these systems years before an inland furnace would show the same wear.
Coastal-Specific Inspections
Our maintenance visits in San Francisco include a visual check for salt-laden corrosion on any outdoor HVAC component, including heat pump condenser coils and furnace vent caps. We also measure static pressure on ducted systems. Tight Victorian and Edwardian floor plans often mean undersized or improvised ducting, and high static pressure shortens blower motor life and strains the heat exchanger.
Combustion Safety Check
Foggy neighborhoods like the Outer Richmond get specific attention here. Sealed-combustion furnaces pull intake air from outside, which reduces the moisture load inside the unit. But if your furnace draws combustion air from a damp crawlspace, we test for flame rollout and carbon monoxide readings at every register. A cracked heat exchanger in a damp crawlspace is a genuine safety risk, and we treat it that way.
Heat Pump Repair in San Francisco
Heat Pump Repair in San Francisco is work we’re doing more of each year, especially in the milder eastern neighborhoods like Potrero Hill and Bernal Heights where ductless mini-splits make more sense than full furnace replacements. The repair range is the same as furnace work, $175 to $825 in this market, and most common issues involve refrigerant leaks at flare fittings, failing reversing valves, or condenser coils that Salt air has eaten through.
Here’s the thing homeowners don’t expect: San Francisco’s salt-laden fog is brutal on outdoor units. The condenser coil on a heat pump near Ocean Beach might last seven or eight years before pitting and corrosion cause a refrigerant leak. The identical unit in Noe Valley might last fifteen. We carry corrosion-resistant replacement coils and can advise whether a coated-coil option is worth the premium for your specific block and exposure.
Reversing Valve and Defrost Sensor Work
When a heat pump won’t switch between heating and cooling, the reversing valve is usually the culprit. On San Francisco’s west side, the constant temperature swings between fog and afternoon sun can cause the defrost sensor to cycle excessively, which wears out the valve over time. We diagnose this with a full refrigerant-side inspection, not just a guess.
Coil Replacement on Corroded Outdoor Units
Our crew replaced a rusted heat exchanger in a Sunset District gravity furnace that had been corroded by years of salt-laden fog. We installed a Trane high-efficiency sealed-combustion unit and verified static pressure to fit the home’s tight Victorian ductwork. That job is the standard we hold on every heat pump and furnace repair in this city: fix the root cause, not just the symptom, and make sure the whole system breathes properly.
Trusted Brands We Service in San Francisco
We service every major residential HVAC brand, and in San Francisco we regularly work on Goodman, Rheem, York, and Daikin systems, among others. Because we’re local, we keep common replacement parts staged for fast turnaround across the city, which means less time waiting on a shipped part from a distant warehouse. If your furnace is a Rheem from the 1990s or a Daikin mini-split installed last year, our technicians know the failure patterns specific to those brands and this climate.
Common Furnace Repair Problems We See in San Francisco Homes
- Rusted heat exchangers in gravity furnaces. The damp marine air in the Sunset and Richmond corrodes older units. A cracked heat exchanger is a carbon monoxide risk and usually means replacement, not a patch job.
- Condenser coil corrosion on outdoor heat pumps. Salt fog eats aluminum fins and copper tubing. Refrigerant leaks follow, then compressor strain, then a dead unit on the coldest night of the year.
- High static pressure in retrofitted Victorian ductwork. Pre-1950s homes were built for gravity heat, not forced air. Improvised duct runs create airflow resistance that kills blower motors and stresses heat exchangers.
- Gas valve failures in damp crawlspaces. Original furnaces often sit in unventilated crawlspaces where moisture shortens the life of solenoid coils and gas valves. Symptoms include no ignition on startup or intermittent heat.
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AfterPricing for Furnace Repair in San Francisco, CA
What you’ll pay for furnace repair in San Francisco depends on what’s actually wrong, and we believe you should know the range before we even arrive. Most repairs fall between $175 and $825, parts and labor included, and we put the exact price in writing before any work starts. No exceptions.
Here’s the line-item breakdown we’re comfortable publishing:
| Service | Typical Price Range (Parts & Labor) |
|---|---|
| Furnace Repair | $175 – $825 |
| Furnace Tune-Up | $95 – $235 |
A gas valve replacement might run $250 to $400. A blower motor replacement could be $350 to $600. A cracked heat exchanger usually pushes toward the top of the range or into replacement territory, and we’ll be straight with you about when repair stops making sense. Estimates are free. Call (559) 245-8807 and we’ll give you an exact number before any wrenches turn.
We Also Serve Cities Near San Francisco
Our crews work throughout the Bay Area, including Daly City, South San Francisco, Alameda, and Berkeley. If you’re just over the county line, the same written-price guarantee, background-checked technicians, and 365-day warranty apply. Many of our San Francisco customers call us again when they move across the bridge or down the Peninsula.
Serving San Francisco, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the San Francisco area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs About Furnace Repair in San Francisco
The Sunset District’s persistent marine fog keeps outdoor humidity high year-round, and original gravity furnaces in pre-1950s homes draw in that damp air directly, which accelerates rust on cast-iron and steel heat exchangers. A heat exchanger that might last 25 years inland can crack in under 15 years there. Sealed-combustion replacement units pull intake air from outside the home and dramatically slow that corrosion. Call (559) 245-8807 for a heat exchanger inspection, and we’ll give you a written report and a fixed price.
Yes, and it’s one of the most common jobs we do in Noe Valley, the Mission, and Pac Heights. The repair approach depends on whether the home still has a working gravity furnace or has been retrofitted with forced air. For existing gravity systems, we repair and replace components compatible with the original design. For homes needing a full upgrade, we often recommend ductless mini-split heat pumps or sealed-combustion furnaces matched to the home’s existing chases and floor registers. We’ll measure static pressure and airflow before recommending anything.
Yes, and it’s significantly worse in the Sunset, Richmond, and any home within a mile of the Pacific. Salt-laden fog condenses on condenser coils and cabinets, leading to pitting, corrosion, and refrigerant leaks. A coil that lasts 15 years in Bernal Heights might fail in eight near Ocean Beach. We stock corrosion-resistant replacement coils and can advise on whether a coated-coil upgrade is worth it for your specific exposure.
Most furnace repairs in San Francisco run between $175 and $825, including parts and labor. Repairs like gas valve replacements typically sit in the $250 to $400 range, while blower motor replacements run $350 to $600. Heat exchanger failures push toward the higher end or into replacement territory. The exact price is always written down and agreed to before any work starts. Estimates are free. Call (559) 245-8807 for a precise quote.
Twice a year. Once before the heating season in October or November, and once in early spring after the dampest months have passed. The marine layer in the Richmond District keeps humidity high enough that rust can form inside the furnace cabinet between annual visits. Homes with original gravity furnaces should be checked twice a year without exception, because a failing heat exchanger is a safety issue before it’s a comfort issue. A tune-up in San Francisco costs $95 to $235, and it’s the cheapest insurance you’ll buy all year.
Call Brandt HVAC Co San Francisco for Furnace Repair You Can Verify
When your furnace breaks, you want two things: a fair price and a person you trust at the door. We provide both. Every technician is background-checked, uniformed, and sent to you by name and photo before the visit. Every job starts with a written price. Every repair carries a 365-day written guarantee, and if it fails, we return free. It’s that simple.
Brandt comes from an old word for a firebrand, a fitting name for the work of keeping a home warm. That’s what we do, from the fog line of the Outer Sunset to the hills of Bernal. Call (559) 245-8807 now. A live person answers, day or night, and we’ll get your heat back on.
Written by Devin Marlowe, Owner at Brandt HVAC Co San Francisco, serving San Francisco and the surrounding Bay Area.