Some London residents are braving the cold in the cold in their own homes as they deal with furnace problems leaving their homes without heat.

London resident Kathy Rumleski tells CTV News she and her family woke up feeling cold this morning.

Upon checking the thermostat she says the temperature was at 14C and dropping.

She said she tried a few things to get the furnace going again, but nothing worked, so she took the morning off work to wait for a repair company to arrive - and make sure the pipes didn’t freeze.

“You do get a panicky feeling because you don’t know what’s wrong with the furnace,” Rumleski says.

She spent the morning sitting by the electric fire place and cleaning the house to try and keep warm through movement.

According to Peter Inch, general manager at Ron Inch & Sons Service Experts, Rumelski is one of many people across the region dealing with furnace problems right now.

He says service calls are up 30-40 per cent for this time of the year, with crews working a significant amount of overtime to try to keep up.

"On the average they're probably working five to six hours overtime each person. We've been running calls from eight in the morning until two at night,” Inch says.

He says the cold weather can be problematic for people who don’t properly maintain their furnaces throughout the year.

Inch says people should ensure their filters are clean and free of debris and make sure drain hoses are clear.

Blowing snow can be a big issue for high-efficiency furnaces that are vented on the outside of homes, Inch says, if snow gets into vents and plugs them that can stop furnaces from working.

He is urging people to be patient while staff respond to calls, and says purchasing a space heater is an option for those waiting for repairs.

Meanwhile the London Professional Fire Fighters Association is also reminding the public to be careful when it comes to using space heaters as heating equipment is one of the leading causes of home fire deaths.