The problem was fixed by Monday afternoon, but by then some students had already faced two freezing nights.
Several students in other residence halls also called the Department of Housing and Residential Education with complaints about individual rooms.
The individual problems -- most of which were related to cold air in heating pipes -- were quickly resolved, said Christopher Payne, director of the Department of Housing and Residential Education.
The only residence hall-wide heating problem was in Alderman, Payne said.
Maintenance staff began troubleshooting the problem when they were made aware of it late Saturday night, and Alderman residents were informed via e-mail about their progress.
While waiting for the heat to return, Alderman residents had various ways of coping. "I was sitting in my room with a winter coat and gloves on," said sophomore Catherine Cheng. "It was so cold I was dreading to take a shower because I thought I would get hypothermia."
Other residents sought refuge from the cold by fleeing to other residence halls. "I've got some friends on South Campus, and it was unbearable, so I went and stayed with them," said junior Latorya Jarman. "My fish froze. It was dead. The first living thing I ever owned by myself, and it died. It was so sad."
Curtis Wilson, the maintenance supervisor for Mid and North Campus, said he had space heaters ready in case Alderman was not warm by Monday night.
But maintenance workers identified a problem with the building's heat pump Monday and fixed it Monday afternoon, said mechanic William Howard.