Latest / Shafer Heating and Cooling Service Repair Podcast / 🏡🔥 Why Your Furnace Smells on First Start — Shafer Heating & Cooling Expert Answers

Transcript

🏡🔥 Why Your Furnace Smells on First Start — Shafer Heating & Cooling Expert Answers · Shafer Heating and Cooling Service Repair Podcast

• 0:02
  Winter's on its way we know what that means and i have got nathan shaffer from
• 0:08
  shaffer heating and cooling joining me here on the checker pro radio show nathan how are you,
• 0:14
  i'm doing phenomenal jim how are you i'm doing well getting a little brisk right
• 0:19
  so we've got to get ready for the season the questions come in from melissa
• 0:24
  in leesburg you ready for the question let's go for it all Right.
• 0:27
  She says that she turned her furnace on for the first time this fall,
• 0:31
  and there was a weird burning smell.
• 0:34
  Should she be worried?
• 0:37
  Good question. And it's a common one that we get this time of year.
• 0:41
  And so, you know, initially, I don't want to say no, right? And then that could be something.
• 0:46
  But let me say this. Oftentimes, it is common right now when you first turn
• 0:50
  on that first time to get that, whether it be a gas furnace or an electric furnace, this applies to both.
• 0:56
  When it kicks on, you can imagine dust collecting on those heat exchangers and
• 1:01
  or on those heating elements in the electric furnace throughout the summer,
• 1:04
  spring, summer, and fall.
• 1:05
  It hasn't been on. Just like when you maybe turn on a toaster or something else
• 1:09
  hot, right? It's got some dust on it. It gets that hot, burnt smell.
• 1:13
  That smell should be there. Then go away fairly quickly, right,
• 1:16
  within a few minutes and disappear.
• 1:19
  Something that's continuing, then yes, make sure things shut down. Let's check it out.
• 1:23
  But the first initial turn on for that system in the heating season,
• 1:27
  it's not uncommon because we're just burning that dust off for the first time.
• 1:31
  For the start of the heating season.
• 1:33
  So, yes, it could be something else. But commonly this time of year,
• 1:36
  that first time you kick it on, very common that that comes up.
• 1:39
  And it's obviously initially a worry or scare and a common phone call we get this time of year.
• 1:44
  Most likely not dangerous if you don't smell it after a while.
• 1:49
  It's most likely some old organic material maybe some skin cells some hair some dust and,
• 2:00
  when it burns off it doesn't really hurt you there's no toxicity to that is
• 2:04
  there no no no you're fine as far as that goes yep just that
• 2:07
  little bit of dust that's collected it's passed through the filter and it's
• 2:10
  gotten onto that system and that all depends on the filtration system and things
• 2:12
  right but something that's just collected there over the over the off season months.
• 2:18
  On that heat exchanger that now it's just that initial burn off.
• 2:21
  You know, speaking of filters, the better filtration system you have, the better.
• 2:26
  And you can also help out our listeners with that because if they have like
• 2:30
  those simple one inch filters throughout the house at their returns,
• 2:37
  you guys can put in like a media filter, which might be able to help as well.
• 2:42
  A hundred percent. Yeah. So, um, you know, a typical air filter is going to
• 2:46
  allow a lot of stuff pass through that, which means like in this case,
• 2:50
  that much more dust and contents is going to collect not only on the heat exchanger,
• 2:53
  but in your A-coil and maybe your secondary heat exchanger on your blower wheel,
• 2:57
  recirculate back through the house, right.
• 2:59
  And be on your, your end tables and your table and you see it floating in the
• 3:02
  air, like it, so you're breathing it.
• 3:04
  And so it contributes to all of that. But by putting in that better,
• 3:07
  um, true air cleaner, right.
• 3:09
  A better filtration, which is called an air cleaner with that.
• 3:12
  Then we can take and catch 99% of that and keep that out of the house and out
• 3:17
  of the system to where now
• 3:19
  we're not going to hopefully get that burst smell near as much,
• 3:21
  if at all, but also, too, even more importantly, protect the system,
• 3:25
  help utility bills, help the system have a longer lifespan, as well as help
• 3:29
  you breathe cleaner, fresher air inside the home.
• 3:32
  Absolutely. On that note, I'd like to thank you very much, Nathan,
• 3:36
  for joining me here on the show, as usual.
• 3:38
  And for all of you out there listening and watching, all of Schaefer's information
• 3:42
  is located in the description of this podcast. They're just one click away.
• 3:49
  Thank you, Jim. Appreciate you. Thank you.