# Water heater and furnace sales at your door: Ontario's rules > Ontario restricts selling water heaters and furnaces at your door. When a contract is void, the 10-day cooling-off period, and what to check before you sign. - Canonical HTML: https://www.jackmanmechanical.com/guides/door-to-door-water-heater-furnace-ontario/ - Section: Home > Guides > Water heater and furnace sales at your door - Business: Jackman Mechanical Ltd., Toronto, ON, Canada (serves Toronto, North York, Mississauga, Markham, Ajax) - Phone: (416) 888-1371 | Text: (289) 639-2754 | Email: jackmanmechanicallimited@gmail.com - Page updated: 2026-10-21 --- Guide In Ontario, since March 1, 2018, a business may not sell you a water heater, furnace, air conditioner or water treatment device at your home unless you contacted it first and invited it to make a contract. A contract that comes from knocking on your door is void, and you keep the equipment with no obligation. If you invited the business in, you have 10 days to cancel. A guide from Jackman Mechanical Ltd., Toronto. ## Which products does Ontario's rule cover? The Government of Ontario lists these as the restricted products and services [(Government of Ontario)](https://www.ontario.ca/page/rules-businesses-entering-contracts-consumers-home): - furnaces, air conditioners, air cleaners and air purifiers - water heaters - water treatment devices, water purifiers, water filters and water softeners - duct cleaning services - any good or service that does one of those jobs, for example an HVAC system ## When may a business sign a contract in my home? Only when you started it: you called or emailed and asked the business to come to your home to make a contract. There is one exception. A business that already has a written contract with you may contact you and visit, but before it comes it must ask whether it may offer you a product during the visit, and you must agree to hear the offer. A repair visit does not change that. A company at your home for repairs or maintenance may not sign you to a new contract for one of these products during the visit unless it has an existing contract with you, asked you in advance, and you agreed. It may leave marketing materials. Same source. ## What happens to a contract signed after a knock on the door? It is void. The Government of Ontario says that if you enter into a contract because of unsolicited door-to-door marketing, or because of misleading marketing materials left at your home, you keep the products or services without any obligation, and if you pay charges because of the voided contract, such as to remove or return the equipment, the business must reimburse you. **Ontario's in-home sales rule for water heaters, furnaces and the rest, at a glance** | Situation | What the rule says | | --- | --- | | A salesperson knocks without being asked and you sign | The contract is void. You keep the product with no obligation. | | You called the business and invited it to your home | The contract stands, with a 10-day cooling-off period. | | A technician is there for a repair | No new contract for these products, unless you have a contract with that business and agreed in advance to hear an offer. | | Before any work begins | You sign the contract and the government's mandatory cover page, which sets out your rights. | | After you sign in your home | The business must keep records for three years showing that you started the transaction, or that the exception applied. | ## How does the 10-day cooling-off period work? If you invited the business and signed a contract for one of these products in your home, you can cancel within 10 days without a reason or a penalty. The 10 days start on the date you receive a written copy of the agreement. The contract has to clearly disclose the overall cost and any cancellation fees [(Government of Ontario)](https://www.ontario.ca/page/rules-businesses-entering-contracts-consumers-home). Cancel in writing, and keep a copy of what you sent and when. ## Can a water heater company put a lien on my house? Not a notice of security interest for household equipment any more. A notice of security interest, often called a NOSI, was a notice a company could register on the title to a home for equipment it said was not fully paid for. The Government of Ontario says the Homeowner Protection Act prohibits registering NOSIs for consumer goods, and it updated the mandatory cover page after that law passed (same source). If an old notice still shows on your title, a real estate lawyer can tell you how to have it removed. ## Is my water heater rented or owned? A rented tank belongs to the rental company, not to you, which is why Jackman Mechanical's request form asks. A monthly charge for the water heater on a utility or rental bill is the usual clue. Before you sign anything that replaces, buys out or adds equipment, ask these and get the answers in writing: - Is this a rental, a purchase, or a financing agreement, and who owns the equipment at the end? - What is the overall cost, and what does it cost to cancel or buy out? - Who services it, and who do I call when it breaks? - For a gas water heater or furnace: is the company a TSSA-registered contractor? The [gas work guide](https://www.jackmanmechanical.com/guides/who-can-work-on-gas-ontario/) shows how to check. ## Where do I complain about a door-to-door sale? To the Ontario Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement. Its complaint page recommends writing to the business first, lists large appliances, including heating and air conditioning equipment, among the complaints the law covers, and says it may not be able to help with events more than two years ago [(Government of Ontario)](https://www.ontario.ca/page/filing-consumer-complaint). So complain early. ## How does a job with Jackman Mechanical start? With you. Every job on this site starts with you calling [(416) 888-1371](tel:+14168881371), texting photos to (289) 639-2754, or sending the [request form](https://www.jackmanmechanical.com/request/). Jackman Mechanical repairs and replaces [water heaters](https://www.jackmanmechanical.com/residential/water-heaters/) and repairs, installs and maintains [gas furnaces](https://www.jackmanmechanical.com/residential/furnaces/); its typical price for a new furnace is $4,000 to $7,000 all in, and the [furnace replacement guide](https://www.jackmanmechanical.com/guides/replacing-gas-furnace-toronto/) covers the permit in each city. A quoted job comes with a written estimate before the work starts. Published by Jackman Mechanical Ltd., Toronto. Updated October 21, 2026. Free to share and quote, with a link back to this page. ## Pricing a replacement? Text a photo of the label on the tank or furnace to (289) 639-2754, and we price the job with you. [Text (289) 639-2754](sms:+12896392754) --- Jackman Mechanical Ltd.: plumbing, gas and heating for homes and businesses in Toronto, North York, Mississauga, Markham and Ajax. Call (416) 888-1371. Full site: https://www.jackmanmechanical.com/