When the first chill of autumn creeps into your home, you flick a switch and on comes your furnace, delivering warm comfortable air to your family. But what happens if that warm air is accompanied by a funny odor? Stinky smells can happen at any time of the heating season. Sometimes, it’s nothing to worry about – and sometimes, it’s time to turn off the furnace and call us immediately. Here’s how to tell the difference.
Dusty smell?
The first time you turn on your furnace each season, you may smell something like hot or toasting dust. That’s really exactly what it is. Over the summer, dust has been accumulating on your furnace burners, blowers, duct work and other components. That first burst of heat burns it all off. This one is nothing to worry about – unless that burning smell continues for more than a few minutes or occurs every time the furnace kicks on. Getting your furnace cleaned and tuned-up by your Maertin professionals can help alleviate that odor.
Musty or moldy odor?
A smell of mold or must means calling us immediately. It could be you have mold growing in or under your furnace or in your ductwork. Don’t expose your family’s to mold spores in the air. Mold in your home will cause nasal congestion, sore throats, eye and skin irritation. Upper respiratory infections and breathing problems. We’ll check your equipment and determine if the mold is in the furnace or in the ductwork, and then help you get the issue remediated.
Fritos, old cheese or dirty socks?
Yes, some furnaces do get this smell! A build up of bacteria in your heating system can happen when your furnace cycles from hot to cold, such as during the fall and spring seasons, when you may not turn the heat on everyday. When the furnace is turned on, the bacteria warms up, causing a hockey-jersey-drenched-in-old-fish smell permeating your home. First, change your furnace filter. If the smell persists, call Maertin for a thorough cleaning of your equipment.
Car or motorcycle “exhaust” smell – or no smell at all, but sleepiness, headaches or stinging eyes?
Turn off that furnace immediately, get your entire family and any pets out of the house and call us. You could have a leak that’s allowing deadly carbon monoxide (CO) gas into your home. Your family will experience dizziness, nausea, irregular breathing and fatigue. Prolonged exposure to CO gas is fatal. Make sure you have a working CO detector in your home, placed in the hallway outside your bedrooms. A plug-in with battery back-up in case of power outages is worth the investment to keep your family safe.
Burning, “lightening”, electrical burning, “chlorine” or melting plastic odor?
First, check the area around your furnace and make sure nothing is leaning against or has fallen into the unit – and remember to keep items like toys, holiday decorations and more well away from your furnace. If you’re not finding any objects in or around the furnace that are causing this odor, turn off the furnace and call us for an emergency visit. When you smell burning or melting plastic, wires and other electrical components are shorting out. This could not only burn up your furnace components, it could burn down your entire home!
Here at Maertin Heating and Cooling, we do everything we can to keep your furnace running safely and efficiently for as long as possible. However, your furnace is built to last about 20 years. When your furnace is older than 15-18 years and you need expensive repairs that cost more than 20% the price of a new unit, you’ll want to carefully consider new equipment instead of those repairs.
Smelling something funny or just have questions about your furnace? Contact us here at Maertin Heating and Cooling by calling 708-479-9350 or click here. We are happy to help!
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