Most households rely heavily on furnaces to provide adequate heat for their homes. However, furnaces will probably experience a breakdown from time to time. One sign of a breakdown is a strange odor. If you start to smell something off, there could be several different reasons your furnace is malfunctioning.
1. Gas Leak
Natural gas is a common fuel to use. However, it can be hazardous when it backs up inside your home. If you start to smell rotten eggs or sulfur, it’s the mercaptan that’s added to natural gas. It’s important that you immediately shut off the gas supply going to your furnace. Be sure to also shut your furnace off and open up windows to allow the excess natural gas to dissipate into the air outdoors. You’ll want to have one of our HVAC technicians assess your furnace before running it again.
2. Burning Dust
When you first turn on your heating system for the winter season, it isn’t uncommon for a slight burning smell to happen. Some homeowners refer to this smell as garbage-like. The smell is created by dust burning off the surface of the furnace’s components. This smell should dissipate within a few minutes. If it doesn’t stop after 10 minutes, it’s best to have an HVAC technician evaluate your system further.
3. Electrical Issue
All it takes is one look inside your furnace to discover that it contains many electrical components. Over time, they can experience malfunctions, which can be caused by corrosion or overheating. An electrical issue, like a burnt wire casing or an overheated blower motor, will usually emit a burning plastic or rubber smell. It’s important to shut your furnace off immediately and have a professional repair it before using it again.
4. Overly Dirty Ductwork
Getting a whiff of a musty odor is not something that you want to experience with your furnace. This typically indicates that your ductwork is excessively dirty and can have mold or mildew growing inside it. It’s vital to note that both mold and mildew spores can be dangerous to your respiratory health. Enlist the help of an HVAC company to clean your ducts to get rid of this unwanted odor.
5. Cracked Heat Exchanger
As your furnace burns natural gas or propane, it will create heat. This heat gets forced through the heat exchanger, while the harmful gases get vented directly to the outdoors. Unfortunately, if your heat exchanger cracks, it can allow harmful carbon monoxide to seep out into the air in your home. While carbon monoxide is odorless, homeowners report smelling a chemical-like odor when they have a cracked heat exchanger. It’s best to shut your system off if you experience this issue to prevent harmful carbon monoxide from backing up into your home.
6. Blocked Chimney
If your furnace relies on natural gas or propane, it will be connected to a chimney. This is necessary to vent the exhaust byproducts from the combustion process to the outdoors. Unfortunately, if there’s a blockage in your chimney and the exhaust fumes can’t escape, they can flow back into your home. You may get a whiff of a sewage or smokey smell from your furnace. It’s imperative that you shut off your furnace and open your windows. These toxic fumes, like carbon monoxide, can be extremely dangerous to your health and even fatal in large concentrations.
8. Pest Infestation
In winter, rodents and pests will seek a warm and dark environment. Unfortunately, your ductwork can create the perfect habitat for these unwanted pests. If you start to smell a foul, funky, or even sour odor, it can be the result of a pest infestation in your ducts.
As rodent and pest urine and feces collect inside your ducts, it can drastically reduce air quality in your home and be dangerous for you and your family to breathe in. Shut your heating system off, and have a professional remove the infestation and clean the inside of your ducts.
9. Traveling Odors
Your furnace relies on ductwork to deliver hot air throughout the various rooms in your home and to recirculate stale air to be reheated. Because of this movement, your ductwork can actually suck in odors that are being produced in one or more rooms of your home. For example, if someone is using a cleaning product, like bleach, your ducts can redistribute that odor to all the other rooms of your home.
Tips for Preventing Unfavorable Furnace Smells
While responding quickly to a furnace issue is imperative to ensure your safety and the overall integrity of your furnace, it only makes sense to prevent these issues from happening in the first place. One of the best preventative tips that you can employ is to get an annual maintenance service for your furnace.
This is where a professional will assess your furnace, test its functioning, and repair any potential issues. By replacing worn-out components and identifying problems, you can drastically reduce your risk of experiencing a furnace issue during the winter.
Apart from professional maintenance service, there are also some necessary maintenance tasks that you’ll want to do for your furnace. One of the most important is checking and replacing its filter regularly. Most homeowners find that they need to replace their system’s air filter every two to three months. You can easily see if your system’s filter is dirty by holding it up to a light source. If you can’t see through it, then it needs to be replaced immediately.
Reliable Furnace Repair Service
Armour Home Comfort offers reliable furnace repair service in the Belleville, ON region. We can also help with all your heating, air conditioning, heat pump, thermostat, and fireplace needs. Call us today to book your next service consultation!
