Your furnace is one of those appliances in the home that you don’t tend to give much thought to until it is causing issues. In reality, it’s something that homeowners should be paying attention to, making sure they maintain it, have a professional do a yearly inspection, and catch any warning signs when they first pop up, so as not to allow further damage from occurring. No-one wants to be without their furnace in the dead of winter simply because the warning signs were ignored.
So what happens if you are noticing a bad smell coming from your furnace? What does that smell me? What should you do about it? Here we’ll take a look at some of the most common odours you may encounter and what they mean.
The Smell of Smoke
When it comes to bad smells, here’s one you absolutely don’t want to ignore and that’s the smell of smoke. If it’s just a faint smell you can open your windows to air out your house, but if it is strong it is recommended everyone leaves the house immediately and you call in a repair person to take a look. It’s always best to err on the side of caution where smoke is concerned.
Sometimes the smoke can be so bad that your smoke detector even goes off. Just be sure you also shut off the furnace immediately. As for what this smell can mean, it could be that the chimney or the furnace is blocked.
The Smell of Rotten Eggs
Another commonly described smell is rotten eggs, which points to an issue with the natural gas supply. Again, you want to turn your furnace off immediately, open up all the windows, contact a repair person as well as your natural gas company. The gas company may ask you to vacate your home until someone arrives to take a look.
The Smell of Burnt Electrical Wiring
If you smell something burning, in this case, electrical wiring, chances are you are right on the money. It’s important to turn off the furnace as it is too hot and is likely damaging the interior components. It should be left off until a repair person can assess the situation.
The Smell of Burnt Dust
A very common odour that homeowners may detect is the smell of burnt dust. While this shouldn’t be ignored, it’s not usually cause for alarm. Typically it means the furnace has a lot of dust built up and this will likely burn off after a day or two.
Don’t Hesitate to Call in a Professional Repair Person
No matter which of these bad smells from the furnace you may be detecting, if you have any doubt at all what it may be, or you just don’t feel comfortable assessing the situation yourself, it’s wise to call a professional furnace repair person in such as those available through Action Furnace. They offer 24/7 emergency availability and can come out and diagnose the issues and solve the problem.
Ignoring Bad Smells is Never a Good Plan
At the end of the day, no matter the smell, or how strong it is, ignoring this potential warning sign is never a good plan.
