A cold room with an electric heater is usually one failed part. We find which, fix it or swap the heater, and have the heat back the same visit.
Next Phase Electric repairs and replaces electric baseboard heaters and in-wall fan heaters, including Cadet, in homes across South King and Pierce County. When one stops heating, the cause is usually the thermostat, a tripped safety cutout, or a burned-out element. A thermostat or cutout is repaired in under an hour. A failed element means a new heater, which goes on the existing wiring in about an hour. We test the circuit first, tell you which it is, and give you the exact price before any work.
One cold bedroom, or every heater in the house.
The old heater off the wall, a new one the right wattage for the room on the same wiring. Standard or quiet hydronic models.
Fan-forced in-wall heaters swapped for the current model that fits the same can, or a new can where the old one is rusted or recalled.
No heat, heat that never shuts off, a fan that hums and does not spin, a breaker that trips when it comes on. Tested, then fixed.
A wall thermostat in place of the knob on the heater, or a programmable or smart one made for electric heat. The biggest comfort gain for the least money.
In the order we check them.
The most common failure by far. The contacts wear, and the heater either never comes on or never shuts off. A new thermostat costs far less than a new heater.
Every heater has a switch that shuts it off if it overheats. Dust, a curtain or furniture against it trips it. Some reset themselves; some have to be replaced.
A burned-out element or a seized fan motor ends the life of most heaters. Parts exist for newer models; for older ones a new heater is the sound repair.
If you are replacing one anyway, this is the choice.
| Baseboard heater | Fan wall heater | |
|---|---|---|
| How it heats | Silently, by warm air rising along the wall. | A fan pushes heat into the room, so it warms up faster. |
| Noise | None, apart from the odd tick as it warms. | A steady fan sound while it runs. |
| Wall space | Several feet of wall kept clear of furniture and curtains. | About the size of a sheet of paper, between two studs. |
| Best for | Bedrooms and living rooms. | Bathrooms, hallways and rooms with no free wall. |
Several series of older Cadet and Encore in-wall heaters were recalled for fire risk in 2000. If yours is that old, we check the model before repairing it.
Licensed, bonded and insured. Background-checked crew.
Tell us which rooms are cold and what the heater does or does not do. A photo of the heater helps. A technician reaches out within 1 business hour.
Voltage at the heater, the thermostat, the cutout, the element. You get the exact price before any work, and you approve it first.
Part replaced or new heater mounted, run up to temperature, thermostat set, clearances checked.
Repairs: King and Pierce County south of I-90. Installations: greater Puget Sound.
In order of likelihood: a failed thermostat, a tripped safety cutout from dust or something blocking the heater, a tripped breaker, or a burned-out element. If the breaker is on and the heater stays cold with the thermostat turned up, it needs testing with a meter.
Often, yes. Fan motors, cutouts and thermostats are available for current models. If the heater is one of the Cadet or Encore models recalled in 2000, or the can is rusted, we replace it with the current model that fits the same opening.
A like-for-like replacement on the existing wiring takes about an hour per heater, and several in one visit cost less each. A different size, a new location or a new thermostat adds to it. You get the exact price before any work starts.
Most are 240-volt and wired directly into the house wiring, not plugged in. A homeowner may work on their own house, but anyone paid to do it in Washington must be a licensed electrical contractor, and the new heater has to match the circuit it goes on.
A dusty smell for the first hour of the heating season is normal: it is dust burning off. A smell that persists, a plastic or fishy smell, scorch marks, or a heater that glows is not. Turn it off at the breaker and call.
Yes. We move the control from the knob on the heater to a thermostat on the wall, which holds the room far more evenly. Smart thermostats made for electric heat exist; the common ones sold for central heating do not work on a baseboard circuit, so tell us before you buy one.
Baseboards are cheap to fix and expensive to run. A ductless heat pump gives the same heat for roughly a third of the electricity, and many people keep the baseboards in the bedrooms as backup. We handle the electrical side, and Next Phase Heating and Cooling, our sister company, installs the heat pump.
Book online or call. Tell us which heater and what it is doing.