No heat across a Manhattan building at 2 AM, a plant locked out, water in the boiler room? Emergency triage runs around the clock — describe the situation and it gets prioritized by severity. Building plants, gas, oil, and steam.
General inquiries: 7 AM–7 PM · Emergency calls: 24/7 · (888) 766-1474
Three questions route every Manhattan emergency call.
First, scope — one apartment cold, or the whole building? A single cold unit is almost never a plant emergency; a whole building with no heat in freezing weather jumps the queue. Second, district steam or building boiler — if the building takes Con Edison steam, there is no boiler to repair, and the triage pivots to building-side distribution or the utility feed. Third, your role — super, managing agent, board member, or resident determines what can be authorized tonight versus what needs a board decision in the morning.
Answer in plain language. “Whole building, no heat since 11 PM, we’re on our own boiler, I’m the super” is a complete and perfect triage report.
Severity, not inconvenience, sets the queue.
A few cold apartments, lukewarm radiators on one riser, or a plant that runs but seems inefficient are real problems — but they belong on the standard repair page, not the emergency queue. Honest triage keeps emergencies fast.
Safe steps for supers and managers before the tech arrives.
Confirm the emergency switch and breakers — a tripped breaker from an unrelated fault has stranded more than one building. On a steam plant, check the sight glass: empty means the low-water cutoff shut the burner down to protect the boiler — do not defeat it. Do not keep resetting an oil plant that locks out; one reset and observe. If water is pouring from the plant or piping, close the manual feed valve and de-energize at the emergency switch, then notify the managing agent — insurance and the board will want the timeline documented.
Notify residents with a realistic status, not a promise: “a technician has been dispatched, next update in an hour” beats a guaranteed time that slips. We triage by severity around the clock, and the dispatcher will give you a straight answer about sequencing.
Run these before you call — every answer sharpens the triage.
Then call (888) 766-1474 — 24/7 — with scope, steam source, and what you found. If the gauge reading looks wrong, our boiler pressure guide explains what it is telling you.
Straight answers before you call.
The triage sorts by severity immediately: a whole building with no heat in freezing weather jumps the queue. You will be asked whether the building runs its own plant or takes district steam, because that decides what kind of help is dispatched. Say you are the super or manager so authorization is clear from the start.
No. Evacuate the area and call the gas utility's emergency line first, then the repair line at (888) 766-1474 only after the utility has cleared the building. Gas odor in a building plant room is always a utility-first call, and the triage will confirm that before anything else.
Stop resetting it. Repeated resets on a building burner can flood the chamber and turn a service call into a hazard. Note the lockout code or message on the control and describe it on the call. A no-heat building plant on a freezing night is triaged as the highest priority.
If you can safely reach the feed valve, shut it; if not, say so on the call. Water damage triage runs alongside the heating triage because a burst riser affects both. Tell the triage whether the boiler itself is wet; a wet plant stays off until inspected.
Yes. Supers can authorize diagnostics and minor repairs in most buildings, which is usually what an emergency call needs first. The triage will explain where the authorization line sits for larger work so the super knows exactly what can proceed tonight and what waits for the agent.
Related services in the Manhattan area.
Call (888) 766-1474 now — 24/7 emergency telephone line for no-heat, lockouts, and boiler-room flooding.
